


Long Story Finch

by LLS



Category: Person of Interest (TV), True Lies (1994)
Genre: Action & Romance, F/F, Humor, Spies & Secret Agents, Terrorism, Thriller
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-25
Updated: 2017-02-25
Packaged: 2018-09-26 19:30:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 23,963
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9918917
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LLS/pseuds/LLS
Summary: A fearless, globe-trotting, terrorist-battling secret agent has her life turned upside down when she discovers her wife might be having an affair with a used car salesman.OrTrue Lies with a few changes.





	1. 1

**Author's Note:**

> Ok, I watched the movie True Lies the other day and the idea of adapting didn't let me sleep. I had good laughs with it.  
> Shaw replacing Harry is even funnier, believe me!  
> So I had to do it. I HOPE you like as much as I did.

 

The snow covered a fortress-like chateau that is situated in a flat saddle of forest partway up the mountain, next to a frozen lake. The property is surrounded by high stone walls, and the stately grounds are bathed in floodlights and patrolled by armed guards.  
The driveway is filled with cars. A formal-dress party is in progress... a private reception for a middle-eastern dignitary. Tuxedos men escort their diamond-encrusted ladies through the huge front doors, where they doff their overcoats and are politely scanned with hand-held metal detectors by white gloved security staffers.  
The walled perimeter of the house runs along the lake, forming a kind of rampart. There is an opening, to a kind of waterway or canal, which connects to the private docks inside the grounds. There is a steel grating across the opening, the bars disappear down the thin ice. There are guards patrolling the house perimeters.

 

\------

 

Down in the across the opening is a figure in a dark diving gear working at the metal bars with an oxygen arc cutting torch. After quickly cutting out three bars there’s enough space for the figure slip through the bars and swim along the stone canal wall.  
The guards from above surface simply don’t notice a dark shadow moving silently below the ripple-glass of the ice heading to behind a large boathouse. The figure uses a knife to break the ice quietly sliding pieces of the way until there’s enough room for a body to slip through the opening.  
A head appears first, in a rubber drysuit hood. The diver slips the regulator out of her mouth and turns slowly, revealing Sameen Shaw. Shaw floats with her eyes above the surface silently as a guard passes on a footpath nearby.  
After a few moments Shaw slips out of her tanks, letting them sink into the cold water, and climbs the frozen ladder onto the dock. Her moves are methodical and silent, opening a waterproof bag, she pulls out a cellphone and an earpiece.  
‘’Cole, I’m in.’’ Shaw said.  
In the nearby surroundings of the chateau there’s a surveillance van. Inside is Shaw’s best friend and partner Michael Cole. He has dark blonde hair, blue eyes and a friendly face. He answer via earpiece.  
‘’Roger that.’’ He turns and put the commlink into mute before yelling. “Hey, Leon! Get in, Shaw’s inside.’’  
Outside, Leon Tao, an Asian-American, finished peeing and hurries back to the van. They are parked half-mile from the chateau , whose lights are visible from distance.  
Leon jumps in and goes to the huge monitors inside of the van, one them showing a night vision image. 

 

\-------

 

Concealed in the shadows, Shaw is shucking out of her drysuit.  
Underneath she is wearing black pantyhose, black half sleeve shirt and above the knee skirt, which needed some adjusting since the fabric was strategic folded on her waist. She pulls out of the bag a pair of black point heels, a handbag, a Beretta Nano and some extra clips.  
Checking all her gear Shaw hides the weapon with a holster on her thigh. She adjusts her clothes and strides confidently out of the shadows, crossing quickly to the main house. She looks ultra sharp in her black attire and bun hair. Shaw enters the main house through a back service entrance.  
Inside the kitchen, Shaw strides through the huge room like she owns the place.  
The kitchen staff are scurrying around, too busy to really notice. She finger-tastes a dish as she passes.  
“Cela nécessite plus d'ail.’’  
This needs more garlic, she says in French.

Shaw breezes through unchallenged exiting into the main hall. In there the party is in full swing. Shaw blends smoothly into the crowd of foreign dignitaries, businessman and minor mid-east nobility.  
They are a high-octane mixture of new oil money and old European money, and run the spectrum from stodgy bankers to playboy arms dealers.  
Shaw strolls amiably among the glittering woman, the cigar smoking men, casually snagging a glass of champagne and a canape from the passing waiters. She nods to someone as if she knows them. Greets another is fluent Arabic.  
People in her wake look at each other like "Do you know her?" They shrug and go on with their conversation.  
Shaw moves through the crowd. Scanning. “I see Daddy Petrobucks.”  
She says she spots through the crowd John Greer, the host of the party and owner of the chateau. He is old and discrete, greeting guests with a polite manner. As Shaw watches he warmly greets a beautiful woman. They become absorbed in a conversation.  
The woman glances up and sees Shaw checking her out. There is a frank moment of returned interest. Then the crowd shifts, cutting off their view of each other.  
Shaw proceeds to makes her way up the grand staircase to the second floor.  
She slips through doors into the private area of the mansion. She open the doors to reveal she’s inside of a darkened library, she crosses quickly crosses quickly to a window and opens it onto a terrace. The agent goes onto the terrace, and in a display of acrobatic prowess, she pulls himself up onto the third floor balcony directly above. She lets himself into Greer’s office that is ornately furnished. Beautiful antiques glint in the moonlight coming in the French-doors. Shaw crosses to an immense desk and boots up the computer there.  
Bathed in the glow from the screen, she pulls a mini flash drive from her handbag connecting quickly to the computer. She pushes a button and a green light comes on.  
“Time to do your magic boys, transmitting….” She announces to her team in the van.  
Cole and Leon watch as their monitor screen lights with data from Greer's private computer.  
“Ok. We are in!” Leon says. He’s a computer ace, flying his fingers on the keyboard as he types rapid key commands. “These are encrypted files, guys. This is going to take me a few minutes.”  
On the library door, Shaw checks if the path is clear of any guards outside, she opens her handbag and uses a small mirror to make sure it’s all clear before leaving the library. But just as she is closing the door, a guard rounds the corner ten feet away. Shaw turns smoothly smiling sheepishly and moves toward the guard.  
‘’Oh, Dieu merci, je t'ai trouvée. Je cherchais la salle de bains.’’  
Oh, thank god I found you. I was looking for the bathroom.

The guard points warily down the corridor. Shaw nods with a coy smile and heads back toward the party. Shaw comes down the staircase amid the glitter of the party. She is sipping champagne and looking bored. She sees two security guys moving purposefully through the crowd toward the stairs. She turns away as they pass her and pretends to study a large fragment of bas-relief... a temple frieze depicting a war chariot drawn by four horses.  
She senses someone next to her and turns. It is the woman. She is captivatingly beautiful, and her gaze is piercing.  
“Magnificent, isn't it?” Shaw begins a conversation with the woman.  
“Yes. Hi, I'm Martine Rousseau. I thought I knew most of Greer's friends but I don't believe I know you.”  
Shaw offers her hand to the woman. “Sameen. Sameen Grey.”

 

\------

 

Back in the van Cole whirls to the screen displaying the mission database. He scans rapidly for any information on Rousseau. “Rousseau, Rousseau. Come on…”  
Then Rousseau's picture and data appear on the screen. “Got it! Martine Rousseau. Art and antiquities dealer, specializing in ancient Persia.”

 

\------

 

Shaw turns back to the fragment of frieze. “This is Persian, if I’m not mistaken?  
“Very good. Do you like Persian antiques?”  
“You have no idea.” Shaw in a shameless way. 

 

\------

 

Outside one of the guards shining his light on the hole in the ice and then on Shaw's footprints leading to the boathouse. He calls to one of the other guards, who comes running over.

 

\------ 

 

Inside the mansion Shaw is still with Martine. She listens Cole’s voice “Shaw, we got a problem. Guards are swarming all over the dock.’’  
Shaw glances up the stairs. Greer's Security chief is gesturing to several of his men, and speaking quickly into a radio. Three security men come down the stairs, scanning the crowd. Shaw turns smoothly away from them and takes Martine's arm.  
“Do you dance, Ms. Rousseau?”  
Shaw steers Martine toward the dance floor.

 

\------

 

Cole, listening just rolls his eyes. He looks through the night vision scope. Guards are running around outside the chateau.  
Meanwhile Leon is still jamming at the keyboard. “Okay, files are unlocked. I'm in. I'm down, baby! I got my hand up her dress and I'm going for the gold. I'm…”  
“Just copy the goddamn files Leon! Shaw, there’s no time for that, now. You hear me, Shaw? Shaw?”

 

\------

 

Back in the main hall Shaw whirls Martine aggressively across the dancefloor. She responds deftly. They are well matched. She parries each of Shaw smooth moves with a flourish. It is a contest of wills, and a surprised appraisal for each that the other is worthy. Martine is hot. Shaw bends her back at the waist, then snaps Martine up. She twirls into the crook of Shaw arm. Their faces are inches apart. The music ends and Martine gives her a wry grin.  
“Well. And I thought this was going to be just another bunch of boring bankers and oil billionaires.”  
“Shaw, seconds count. Ditch the bitch, let's go.” Cole says nervously over the earpiece.  
“Unfortunately, Martine, I have a plane to catch.”  
Martine slips a card out of a pocket in her otherwise sheer dress and hands it to Shaw, maintaining eye contact. “Call me, if you'd like to see some of my other pieces.”  
“I’ll keep that in mind.” Shaw is giving her best goodbye smile and walking away.  
Her partner Cole couldn’t believe this conversation and turned his attention back to Leon. “Can you believe this? She was with Shaw for two minutes and she's ready to bear her children.”  
Leon gives Cole a pointed look at that.  
“Not literally but you know what I mean.” Cole sighed in frustration.  
“All right, what's your exit strategy twinkle toes?  
Shaw just arrived to the main entrance nodding to the security men at the door as she strides confidently through. She goes down the steps to the broad terrace above the motor court. Behind Shaw, a guard starts after her.  
“May I see your invitation, Miss?”  
Without turning, Shaw slips a small flat box out of her handbag, a remote detonator.  
“Sure, here's my invitation.”  
She pushes the button. The second floor office windows blow out in a fiery explosion. Using the diversion, Shaw leaps off the terrace before the guard can open fire.  
From distance Cole sees the rising fireball a half-mile away. He quickly starts the van.  
“Ah, shit. Here we go.”  
Shaw sprints across the snow-covered lawn, through the trees. Guards with automatic weapons run after her, firing. The snow explodes around her with bullet hits. She takes cover behind a near tree to rip her skirt allowing more movement to run.  
She leaps down on the outside of the wall, hitting a snow bank and sliding downhill. She sprints down the gentle slope toward the highway. She looks back as two guards on skis come out of a guard station beside the main entrance. Tracking with the ski-guards, searching through the trees with lights. They have lost Shaw. They suddenly stop. A snowbank behind  
them explodes as Sameen Shaw leaps out., she disables them both with vicious street-fighter moves. She looks upslope as a service gate opens in the perimeter wall and teams of security men in white snow-suits pour out, some on skis, some on snowmobiles.  
“Fuck.” She mumbles, snapping closed the ski boots she has stolen from one of the disabled guards. She pops the boots quickly into the bindings and takes off downhill with one of the guard's rifles slung across her back. Sameen slashes expertly downhill. Automatic weapons fire rips through the trees from behind her. She is going flat-out, bullets rips the slope into white clouds around her. She slashes, turns, weaving among the trees at breakneck speed. A snowmobile is closing in, outflanking her. Shaw turns toward it, suddenly. Hits a mogul. Uses the air to slash her skis right across the rider's face. The snowmobile crashes and tumbles into the night.  
Cole's van takes an icy turn in a hairy slide. Inside Cole is peering upslope, trying to see what's going on. All he can see are lights and gunfire.  
“Shaw, what's your twenty? I need a position.”  
Suddenly a skier in a black attire launches across the road from the slope above, right over the van, and lands deftly downslope.  
“Uh... right! I'll catch you on the next bend.”  
Behind the van, pursuing guards leap across the road. Only about half can make the jump. The rest crash horribly.  
Shaw comes out into the open, going straight downhill like a rocket. Firing from a snowmobile, one of the guards puts a burst right across Shaw's path, her skis are hit and she tumbles, comes out of it... running down the hill like a juggernaut in his heavy boots. She has lost the rifle somewhere in the snow. She takes cover behind a tree. The ski patrol opens fire from upslope. Rounds whacking against the tree, Shaw waits until they run out of ammo. Then she makes her move putting them down with an accurate sequence of shots. She continues running desperately down zigzagging to avoid be an easy target.  
“Shaw! Where are you?!” Cole is screaming with the adrenaline.  
“Almost in the next bend.”  
Cole slides the van around the curve in high speed. Then a small figure drops right towards him, he hits the breaks. The dark figure drops on the road ten feet in front of the skidding van. Leon and Cole jump out of the van, they look down to see Shaw laying on the road completely wasted.  
“Shaw? Shaw!?”  
“What?” She says in low calm voice.  
Leon reaches up to Shaw, who grabs his hand and pulls. Shaw stumbles a little as she walks to the van, brushing snow off her clothes.  
“I’m freezing. Come on, we can still make our flight.”

 

\------

 

On New York City a non-descript sedan pulls to the curb in a neighborhood of high-income tract homes. The street is deserted. It is 4 A.M. Cole is at the wheel, dropping Sameen Shaw off at her house.  
Sameen is emptying her pockets... passport, business cards etc. All documents under his name "Grey". She double checks that her pants and jacket pockets and empty. Col fastidiously puts the items into a plastic zip-lock.  
“Empty. Go.” Shaw tells him.  
Cole starts handing her items from a briefcase. This feels like a tired ceremony between them after 4 years, but it was the protocol of the agency. So it was business as usual.  
“Sameen Shaw wallet. Sameen Shaw passport. Plane ticket stub, hotel receipt, Shaw. House keys.”  
“Got it. Okay, pick me up at eight. The de-brief is at ten hundred.”  
Shaw opens the car door.  
“Hey, hey, hey... what are we forgetting?”  
Shaw looks at him with a blank expression on her face.  
Cole holds up Shaw's gold wedding band, she puts it on.  
“Yeah, thanks. See you at eight”. She says without looking at him.  
“Yep. Sleep fast Shaw” And then Cole is driving away with the Sedan.

 

\------

 

Shaw slips inside, she sets down her suitcase and walks quietly down the hall.  
In the bedroom, Shaw undresses and slips into bed next to a lump in the covers which is Samantha Shaw or like she prefers to be called Root, Shaw’s wife for 4 years. Sameen lays down on the bed careful trying not the make too much movement as if sensing that Shaw is back Root stirs and rolls toward her, giving her a sleepy hug.  
“Hi, Sweetie. How was the flight?” Root murmurs drowsy.  
“Fine, just sleep.”  
“Okay.”  
As Root drifts off, Shaw sighs and puts her head on the pillow and stares at the ceiling.

 

\------

 

The next morning Shaw strides down the hall, stopping to pet their Belgian Malinois called Bear, who’s wagging his tail overly excited.  
‘’Hi, big guy. Did you miss me?” Bear only answer is a grunt.  
“I left food on your bowl. Go get it Bear! Go get it!” The dog seems to understand and runs off in pursuit.  
Sameen smiles and crosses the bedroom, hurrying past Root who is clearly rushing to get ready herself. She is wearing a terrycloth robe as she picks out an outfit. Her hair is wrapped in a towel. She could be a lot more attractive if she put any effort into it, nor that she isn’t in a ordinary basis.  
“I’m late.” Sameen tells her.  
“Me too.”  
They barely talk to each other and when they do is without looking at each other.  
“How'd it go in Geneva? Did you close the deal?”  
“Uh, not yet. We’re still working on it.”  
Root waited to see if her wife was going to elaborate but it was a vain hope though, Sameen Shaw was never one to make small talk, especially when it was about her job. Then it hit Root, she had no idea what Shaw really does. Just that she worked in a construction company and traveled a lot.  
“I’m sure you’ll figures things out in the end.” She said.  
Shaw glances at Root, who is oblivious to her and brushing her teeth.

Downstairs in the living room, Cole opens the door, knocks a bit, then strolls in like he lives  
there. Bear runs toward him. “Hi, buddy.” Cole throws his jacket over the back of the couch while he waits.

On their bathroom Shaw and Root maneuver around each other expertly. Root is doing her make-up. “The plumber came yesterday. He said they have to dig under the slab or something and it's going to be six hundred dollars to fix.”  
Sameen is not really paying attention as she ties her boots in front of the mirror. Her mind is elsewhere. She couldn't care less about their domestic problems.  
“Okay.”  
“It's not okay. It's extortion!” Root says indignantly.  
“What did you tell him?”  
“I slept with him and he knocked off a hundred bucks.” Root tried to see if it would be any a reaction of Shaw.  
“Good thinking, Root. Cole probably is already waiting for me. I’ll see later.” She ties her hair in a loose ponytail and walks away.  
Root just watches hopeless as Sameen exists the room. 

 

\-----

 

In the kitchen Cole enters and pours two cups of coffee. Shaw comes in a second later and Cole hands her a cup. “Thanks.”  
“Come on, Shaw we’ll take them on the road.”  
They’re driving through streets of New York. Cole notices that Shaw is grumpier than usual facing the intense traffic so he wisely decides to keep his mouth shout something is bothering her. He wonders is there’s anything to do with Root.  
After an agonizing road trip Shaw makes a turn onto an Avenue, heading toward a parking lot of tall building office downtown. They’re come out of an elevator on the 12th floor. Behind the receptionist is a burnished metal sign which reads Temporary Resolutions. They cross a open floor of cubicle spaces. A normal day at a normal business.  
“Good morning Shaw, Cole”, the secretary greets them. Jane, the secretary, is a highly trained security specialist.  
“Good morning Jane.” Cole answers, Shaw only response is a nod with her head.  
They go into a corridor and stop at a door, unlike any other along the corridor. It’s a secured one with a bulletproof window. There’s a magnetic card reader near the doorknob.  
Cole touches a plastic card into the device and the door unlocks, inside the room there’s another reception with two a guard in black suits armed waiting for them.  
“Please identity yourselves”. One of them announces in an authority voice.  
“Indigo five alpha. Sameen Shaw.”  
“Echo six alpha. Michael Cole.”  
“You are cleared.” The guard says as their clearance appears on a monitor.  
Shaw and Cole both nod as they pass them. They walk through a corridor until they stop at a door with a sign The Activity, inside high-tech office space, it’s a maze of glass partitions surrounding a central floor-space of cubicles with a logo of The Department of Defense. There are a lot of computer screens displaying information from around the world.  
Leon Tao greets them, yawning, as they pass his partitioned cubicle. “You’re late, boss already inside.” Leon hurries them to the conference room.  
Shaw just rolls her eyes at him.  
A dark and severe conference room, with large-screen computer displays at one end. Glowering at one end of the long, polished table, is Control, the chief of The Activity. She is a tall fifty-middle aged woman with a bun hair transpires authority.  
“You guys really screwed up last night. Tell me how I can look at this, that it's not a total screw up. It wasn’t supposed to draw any attention, just a simple operation to get intel not be the four of July!”  
Cole and Shaw exchanges looks.  
“There are degrees of totality.” Leon tries with a small voice. “It's a scale really, with perfect mission on one end and total screw up on the other and we're more about here…”  
“You're new on their team, aren't you?’’ Control intervenes.  
“Yes.”  
“So what makes you think that the slack I cut them in any way translates to you?!” Control harshly says tilting her head.  
All Shaw thought was ‘’since when do we ever get a slack?’  
“Sorry, Ma’am. Uh... here's what we got.” A photo of Greer fills a wall-screen.  
“John Greer. We think he's dirty so we raid his financial files. Check it out...” A second screen lights up with the data for their raid. “One hundred million in wire transfers from the commerce bank international.”  
“Which we all know is a front for certain groups to fund terrorist activities. Something big is going down.” Cole clarifies.  
“And we know that a week ago half a pound of Cesium were smuggled out of Germany.” Leon changes the files on the screen a surveillance photo of a man appears Peter Collier. “We believe that Peter Collier has the Cesium, now.”  
“We think Collier’s group has bought the Cesium and is bringing them to U.S. soil.” Shaw finally decides to join the conversation.  
“They’re a domestic terrorists group called The Vigilance. Do you have hard data on their plans? What’s their target, Agent Shaw?” Controls inquires with a serious expression on her face. She does not play when the subject is national security, Control has been handling national threats for years now.  
“Not what you'd call rock hard.” Shaw says frustrated looking at her boss.  
“Then perhaps you better get some before somebody parks a car in front of the White House with a dirty bomb in the trunk.” Control says standing up and ending the meeting was over.

 

\------

 

On the interior of a huge modern office. Root works as a Senior VP of Strategy and Systems at The Machine corporation that’s one of the tops network companies in America, owed by her mentor Harold Finch.  
Root is a genius on computers and coding. At the age of twelve years old ran away from her home in Bishop -Texas to seek adventure and a purpose in life. Surviving in the streets of New York and committing cybercrimes, life wasn’t easy for Root. And it was in one of her regular trips to tamper a cash machine to stole money that Finch spot her. Finch was on his lunch break buying a cup a green tea on a food cart when he saw her.  
“She’s fearless and highly intelligent” Harold thought.  
Finch was a gentleman with a kind heart that believed in second chances so he decided to help her in any way that he could. It took a long time for Root to trust him but thanks to Harold she graduated and started working at Harold’s company. 

Root was going to the break room for coffee with her friend, Zoe Morgan. Zoe is the firm attorney and still single.  
“I mean, I know she’s not the most communicative person in the world but still she used to be more sincere with me. Whenever I ask her about something even when it’s about her job, Shaw’s mind seems to be in somewhere else.”  
‘’So I guess you didn't get away for the weekend after all?’’ Zoe speaks.  
“Are you kidding? Sameen had to go out of town, again.” As Root speaks ‘again’ there’s a sad tone in her voice.  
“I'm shocked.”  
“Yeah. You know Shaw”.  
“Listen to me. You just need to take control, set up the right mood.’’ Zoe tries to cheer her friend.  
“Shaw only has two moods: busy and asleep.”  
‘Well, maybe three moods’ Root thought Shaw was always hungry.  
“Then you better do something to jumpstart that Shaw's motor. You know..., wake up the sleeping giant of her passion.  
They both crack up at that one.

 

\------

 

Shaw meets up with Cole and Leon coming from the analysis department. “Tell me you got something.”  
Leon hands her a paper “Here, check this out.”  
“It's a half million-dollar disbursement from Greer to Martine Rousseau.” Cole says looking at Shaw.  
“It doesn't mean anything. She buys antiquities for Greer.” For some reason, Shaw’s being defensive about it.  
“Nope, in fact six months ago, Martine Rousseau wasn’t an antique buyer. Before that she just worked for Greer’s company Decima Technologies.  
“Alright, I want a complete workup on her. Do we know where she is?” Shaw takes the lead.  
Cole has a smug expression on his face when tells Shaw “Uh huh. Right here in New York.”  
“You’re kidding.”  
“Apparently, she does stuff on the Smithsonian and has a lot of diplomatic connections, so she has offices here.” Cole is looking on his tablet as he reads the information for Shaw.  
Then he shots Shaw a pointed look. “Sounds like a job for a specialist.”  
Scowling she walks away.  
“Great, another undercover job.”


	2. Chapter 2

Shaw opens the microwave as her dinner finishes re-heating. She sits down alone at the kitchen table with Bear with only company. Another solo supper two hours late. Root comes in from the living room, holding the book she is reading.  
“Hey Sam, I was thinking about changing the curtains. What you think about green?”  
Shaw looks at her with a neutral expression that says she wasn’t paying attention.  
Root takes a deep breath and tries again. “The curtains. I want green curtains. So…?”  
But all she gets is a ‘‘whatever you want, Root’’ and Shaw is back eating her food.  
With that Root gives up.  
“Come on Bear, let’s take a walk.”

 

\------

 

The next morning black limo cruises through a morning fill of bright promise. Inside, Cole is at the wheel in a chauffeur's uniform. He talks to Shaw, riding in the back, without turning.  
“It's all set up. You have a suite at the Marquis Hotel under Grey.”  
They are heading to the office of Martine Rousseau. Inside her office Shaw greets the receptionist introducing herself. “I'm Sameen Grey. I own a corporate art consulting company in San Francisco. I have an appointment with Ms. Rousseau.”  
Shaw is extending her business card to the receptionist as Martine breezes into the lobby from a corridor. She is dressed sharply and looks as stunning as Shaw remembers.  
“Sameen! I thought I might see you again. I just didn't expect you to call so soon.”  
“Well, what's the point of waiting?” Sameen Shaw gives Martine her best charming smile.  
“I agree.”  
There is definitely magnetism here. She indicates for Shaw to walk with her and leads her through the suite of offices. There are mounted fragments of ancient sculpture in niches on either side, and beautifully restored mosaics and tablets of hieroglyphics mounted on the walls.  
“So, your clients want something for the lobby of their new corporate headquarters?”  
‘’That's right. They want something… dramatic. I spoke to a few people who said you're the one to see.”

 

Martine leads Shaw through a door into a large warehouse area. There is a bustle of activity as workmen unpack crates. An overhead crane is used to move huge stone pieces. There are massive columns, and statues two stories high. Even the entire facade of a tomb.  
“So, what did these... people...say about me exactly?”  
They stroll amongst the statues, as coveralled workmen move around them with tools, scaffolding, pneumatic equipment.  
“Let's see... that other dealers and archeologists don't like you much. I wonder why.”  
Martine laughs “Those wimps. It's because of my diplomatic contacts.”  
Peter Collier is watching them intently from nearby posed as a workman.  
“You see, a lot of these pieces are cultural treasures from many countries. So, I've had to become an expert in international diplomacy.”  
Martine stops and looks at Shaw. Her smile indicates the possibility of more than just business.  
“Well, do you see anything you like, Ms. Grey?”  
“Maybe.”

 

\------

 

Shaw, Cole and Leon are in a luxury suite at the Marquis Hotel. It is a corner suite, with a spectacular view of the city. Leon is routinely sweeping the room for bugs with an electronic detector.  
“She's importing some huge stone pieces.” Shaw informs her team.  
Cole stays quiet for moment before speaking, “she could be moving money, guns. Anything.”  
“And the second you left there, we started getting calls, they were checking out the Grey front.” Leon say as he types into a laptop.  
“Okay. Let's step up the surveillance on her. Put on two more guys.” With that Shaw proceeds to order some food with the room service.

 

\-----

 

Meanwhile Collier catches up with Martine, who is going through the doors to the office area.  
“Ms. Rousseau? Can I speak to you for a moment please, in your office?”  
She nods and they go into the private office.  
Collier comes in behind her and closes the door. The moment they are away from public observation he snaps. “You stupid undisciplined bitch!”  
Martine clenches her jaw but remain calm. “It's a good thing you pay me well.”  
“Do you realize that there are surveillance teams watching this place right now? Your phones are almost certainly tapped. And you are busy laughing and flirting with this grey, who may be a…”  
Martine cuts Collier “No. She checked out okay.”  
“We do not tolerate mistakes.”  
Martine bites her lip and says “What do you want me to do?”  
“Find out who this Grey really is.”

 

\------

 

The phone rings on the desk of Jane, Shaw's secretary at Temporary Resolutions, the permanent front-company for The Activity.  
“Hello, Temporary Resolutions. Mrs. Shaw’s office.”  
“Hi, Jane? It's Root. Is Shaw there?” Root is their house calling from the kitchen, where she’s trying to make a cake for Sameen’s birthday.  
Highly trained Jane doesn't hesitate a second before saying.  
“She’s in a meeting, Mrs. Shaw. Let me try her in there. Hold please.”  
Jane presses a button, engaging a digital scrambler and connecting to the team inside the suite at Marquis Hotel, where Cole answers the encrypted phone, before giving it to Shaw with an amused face “It’s Root.”  
Shaw picks up the phone right away.  
“Root? What's going on?”  
“Sorry to bother you in a meeting, but you have to promise me that you'll be home at eight. I don't want Bear and I sitting here by ourselves like we were last year. You promise?”  
Shaw smirks “I'd be there. Trust me.”  
The room phone rings as Shaw ends the call with Root.  
“Hello? Oh, Martine, hi.”  
After a pause listening what Martine is talking on phone Cole sees Shaw answering “Well sure. I can be there in twenty minutes.”  
Shaw hangs up and glances to Cole, who is checking his watch widening his eyes at Shaw.  
Shaw just shrugged, “what? It's on the way. She says she's got something for me.”  
“Yeah, right.”

 

\------

 

It’s already dark in Martine workshop. A man guides Shaw through the maze of statuary. He points toward the back of the warehouse and then leaves. Shaw is left alone in the vast space. Only a few lights are on, rendering the place somewhat Gothic. Shaw strolls in the direction the workman pointed. Ahead of her, is the huge facade of a royal tomb. There is a flickering light inside. A shadow moves across the wall in the entryway.  
“Hello?”

 

She enters the stone doorway of the tomb. Following Shaw as she steps into the inner chamber. There is an oil-lamp burning on a stone sarcophagus, the only light. The room appears empty. Behind her a figure emerges from a shadowed alcove. It is Martine. She looks ethereal in the strange light.  
“Hello, Sameen.”  
Shaw whips around, startled.  
“Do you like my tomb? The museum financing fell out, so I thought your clients might be interested.”  
“Uh, it's certainly... dramatic.” Shaw wants to punch herself for the lack of a better word.  
“Especially in this light. This is the only light they had then… It’s beautiful don’t you think?”  
“Is that why you got into this business?” Shaw asks.  
Martine turns to him in the flickering half-light. She moves closer. Her eyes seem to glitter.” I've always been a collector at heart. When I see something I want, I have to have it.”  
“And you have a reputation as someone who gets what she wants.” Shaw’s voice is low almost like a whisper.  
Martine is very close to Shaw. Martine eyes seem to glitter in the light from the oil lamp. She is unbelievably beautiful. She’s an athletic woman with blonde hair. “Yes, I do.”

 

Outside Cole is sitting in the car, in the shadows, up the street with his earpiece in place. Listening.

‘‘Shaw, this is your conscience speaking...’’

 

Martine picks up the lamp and walks along the wall, holding it up so that the flickering shadows seem to bring the bas-relief figures to life. Stone faces shift and change, stone eyes move. “Look at this.” She presses her cheek against the cold stone. She runs her fingers slowly across the figures. It is strange and erotic. “They breathed and loved and wept, just like us. And now their ideals, their religions, their social orders... are gone like mist. What did any of it matter?”  
She crosses to Shaw.  
“I only hope they lived well. That they got what they wanted.” She puts her hands on Shaw and pulls herself close. It is a hypnotic moment.  
“Getting what you want is the only important thing.” Martine kisses Shaw, very lightly, with infinite sensuality.

 

Inside the car Cole is frenetic “Shaw? Shaw? Listen to the following code word. Root! R-O-O-T. Now, do you want me to call you?”  
Hearing Cole’s voice, Shaw breaks the kiss... slowly pulling back.  
“Yes.”  
“Yes what?” Martine asks her.  
“Uh, yes, it is important.” Shaw manages to say.  
Martine is moving in for a more passionate lip-lock when Shaw’s phone rings. Shaw pulls her phone out of her jacket pocket and looks at it. The moment is spoiled.  
“Uh, it looks like I have to run. I'll call you tomorrow. Your proposal is very interesting.”  
Cole lets out a big exhale of relief and then he looks at his watch.

“Shit!”

 

\------

 

Back at the house, Root and Bear are waiting expectantly at the dining room.

There is a big cake, and presents piled on the buffet in the kitchen. The food is getting cold. She looks at her watch disappointed.

 

\------

 

Inside Cole’s car, Shaw is changing clothes, getting ready to be Sameen Shaw again, as Cole drives through evening traffic. Cole keeps checking the rearview concerned. “We have a friend. Five cars back, inside lane. They've been on us since we left Martine's.”  
Shaw adjusts the passenger side mirror. “Station wagon?”  
“Want me to lose them?”  
“No. We need this lead.” She takes her phone out calling Leon’s number. “Leon, I need you at the Atlantic Terminal Mall in three minutes.”  
“Copy that.” Leon responds ending the call.  
“Root's going to be pissed, you know.”  
“See, that's the problem with terrorists. They're really inconsiderate when it comes to people's schedules.” That’s Shaw only answer.  
In the station wagon, three men are inside the car. Zachary and Paul are in the front, with Zachary driving. In the back is Collier. Paul is massively built, with a body like a beer-keg. Zachary is skinny and intense.

 

From a few cars behind they watch Cole pulling the car to the curb near the mall entrance. They pull over as well keeping a safe distance. Shaw slips out of the car. She pauses on the sidewalk a moment as casually waiting for someone.  
Cole watches through the rearview Paul and Zachary getting out of their cars, crossing the street half a block away. Shaw strolls into the mall. It is an open promenade design, with a moderate crowd of shoppers and movie-goers. Paul and Zachary slip through the crowd behind her.  
“So, what’s the plan Shaw” Cole asks through her earpiece.  
“Gonna try to get a closer shot of Beavis & Butthead.”  
“There's another guy, still in the car.” He informs her.  
“Stay on him.”  
Cole can only see silhouette in the car, no features.  
Shaw turns off the main concourse, into a narrower walkway between shops. Using her training skills she watches Paul and Zachary, who have split up to look less conspicuous, as they track her through the pedestrian traffic. “Amateurs’’ She murmurs to herself.

 

Outside Cole is using his phone, “Root? Hi, it's Cole. Shaw remembered something she left at the office. You know Shaw.”  
As he is talking he sees that a bus has blocked his view of the station wagon.  
In Shaw’s house Root sighs, fatalistically “Yeah, Cole. I know Sameen.’’ Root hangs up the phone and turns to Bear who watches waving his tail. “It’s just you and me again. Come on Bear, let’s eat.”  
There’s hurt in her eyes. She doesn't hate Shaw. She just misses her.  
Paul sees Shaw entering a Bloomingdale's store. He signals Zachary with his eyes and the two of them close in on the store.  
Cole hangs up the phone. Then the bus blocking his view finally pulls away and Cole sees that the station wagon is empty. No silhouette.  
“Fuck!” He quickly connects with his partner. “Shaw, I lost the third guy. Shaw?”  
Shaw can't answer because Zachary is close.  
She is at the cosmetic’s department casually looking at the counters. Zachary goes to the mirror and starts combing his hair.

Shaw is whistling and seems extremely focused on the make-up section. Then Paul comes into the department, seemingly ignoring both Shaw and Zachary, as if heading for the perfume counter.  
As he passes behind Shaw he reaches into his jacket, Shaw spins lightning fast. She knocks away the silenced pistol aimed at the back of her head with a sweeping block, capturing Paul's arm in an arm-lock. The shot goes wide, shattering a chandelier.  
Shaw slams her palm into Paul's face and spins him against the steel counter. The pistol goes skittering across the floor.  
Zachary whips a pistol out of his waistband. Still holding the bear-like Paul, Shaw draws her Nano and shots three rapid shots that go through Zachary's chest, shattering the mirror behind him. He flops on his butt, slumping against a pillar.  
Paul, who is easily double of Shaw's size, managed to grab her gun arm. They smash against the counter, struggling for the gun. Paul, locked to Shaw, hurls her against the glass items on the counter. Then Paul drives Shaw to the floor.  
He slams Shaw's gun hand repeatedly against the floor and twists her wrist brutally. He even pounds against Shaw's hand with his knee. Shaw cries out in pain and the gun drops sliding under the counter through a small crack on it.  
Paul reaches for it, but Shaw kicks his crotch. She punches Paul in the face, driving him back. They grapple, spinning. Shaw drives Paul's head into the counter. Then she elbows him in the throat and they crash together on the floor. Shaw grabs Paul's hair and pounds his face repeatedly. Paul sags into submission. Shaw pulls a zip-tie out of her pocket and uses it like hand-cuffs, securing Paul's wrists.

 

Cole is running full out, drawing his gun. He has one finger jammed in his ear. “Shaw? Shaw, you hear me?! Shit!”  
At the chaos of the store Shaw is pulling Paul to his feet when people around begin to scream “He’s armed!”  
She turns, thinking it is Cole. But It was Collier with a MP5 and then opens fire. Shaw spins Paul between her and the machine gun. Paul’s body stops the spray of bullets from hitting Shaw long enough for her to dive behind a counter nearby. The metal counter covered with mirrors is riddled with hits.  
Shaw is behind the counter with a old guy, who's just sitting there and curled into fetal position screaming. The walls of the counter are pimpling with the hits on the far side. Shaw reaches under the counter, retrieving her Nano.  
Collier goes empty and needs to reload. Shaw hears that and pops out, cranking off rounds of bullets but Collier is running away going out the door, as Shaw shots shatter on the doorframe. Then silence.  
She turns to the old guy in shock and says “Sorry grandpa.’’  
Moving rapidly away from the store and reloading Collier stops on his tracks as he listens Cole’s shouting at him. “Freeze!”  
Collier spins to see Cole nearby, going into a firing stance behind a light-standard. The terrorist doesn't hesitate. Cole tries to hide behind the light-standard, shots hit all around him, shattering window glass behind him. Shots clang into the steel column, and riddle everything behind him.  
“FUCK! FUCK! FUCK!”

 

But when it looks like Cole is going to get shot, Collier turns and sprints away, through shocked people. Shaw runs out of the store, trying for a shot, but there are too many people in the line of fire and Collier knows it.  
She yells at him “get back to the car!’’  
Cole nods and heads the other way as Shaw takes off after Collier, who’s running and hurling people out of the way, sending shoppers sprawling. Shaw is ruthless in her pursuit. They pound through the mall and out onto the street.  
Collier sprints straight into traffic. A car screeches, not stopping in time. He goes right over the hood. Shaw leaps over the hoods of cars after him. He turns and sees a motorcyclist coming down the street, accelerating from a right-turn. Collier runs at him, clothes-lining him right off the bike. The terrorist picks up a Kawasaki KX 250F, which is still running, and leaps on. He pops the clutch and takes off. Shaw pounds after him. He sees Collier turn, taking the bike path into a large park. Shaw cuts into the park on a diagonal.

 

Not far she sees a mounted cop. Shaw doesn't break stride, heading right for the cop on the horse. The cop turns, surprised, a split second before, Shaw pulls him off the horse and slams him to the ground.  
“Federal Officer…. in pursuit of suspect! Sorry.” It’s all she manages to says breathless.  
Shaw is in the saddle and galloping after Collier before the cop can get his gun out of the holster to stop her.  
Collier roars through the park on the Kawasaki. He looks back, amazed to see Shaw charging after him on a horse. They scatter joggers and bicyclists, people walking their dogs.  
Collier leaves the winding path and goes straight through the trees. Shaw charges through some skaters who go sprawling. Collier fires his Beretta straight back at Shaw, emptying it. He drops the pistol and crouches over the bike, twisting the last bit of throttle out of it. They are going flat out, through the trees.  
“Goddamn it, Cole where are you?”  
Cole pulls his car into traffic near the mall, then Leon car pulls out as well, up the block. “Shaw, what's your twenty?”  
Shaw is legging the police horse hard. She has the reigns in one hand and her Nano in the other.  
“West in the park, suspect is on a motorcycle. He's going to come out on Franklin. Hang on.”  
She leaps a park bench and continues. “I want you on 14th in case he turns south. And I need Leon on the north side to box him in.”  
“Got it.”  
“And make it fast. My horse is getting tired.”  
“A horse?” says Cole incredibly.

 

Collier explodes through the bushes and out onto the street. Cars skid around him, out of control. He turns south. Weaving through traffic.  
Shaw leaps the hedgerow behind Collier and gallops among the spun-out cars. Up ahead traffic is stopped, jammed tight at a light making Collier go into the oncoming traffic lanes, which are empty. Cole's car slides around the corner in a blare of horns and comes barrelling down the street toward him. Cole cranks the wheel the slides the car broadside, blocking both lanes.  
Collier locks up the brakes and the bike slides to a stop. Then he pops the clutch and wheels the bike around, jumping the curb and going straight at the entrance of the Hyatt Regency hotel.  
Bellmen and guests scatter as the bike roars right at them. The sliding doors and opening for a bellman coming out with bags and Collier blasts past him into the lobby.  
Shaw ducks, galloping through the doors after him.  
“This guy don’t know when to quit!” She says angrily.

 

Acres of marble and red carpet. Liveries porters. Guests dressed for evening, the men in suits, diamonds on the women. It’s all a sudden pandemonium as Collier roars through the lobby, with Shaw charging along behind him. Collier guns it across the lounge knocking over tables. He gets air at the top of the steps going up to the restaurant.  
Shaw swerves to avoid a panicking guests and continues to pursuit Collier. He skids out into the main hall by another door, and sees the elevators. The door is just closing on one of them. He guns it and slides through the doors. Shaw rides out of the restaurant in time to catch a glimpse of Collier as the doors close.  
Shaw canters the horse into the next elevator, which has just been boarded by an older couple. She has to practically lie down on the horse to fit through the door.  
The animal barely fits, nose to tail, in what turns out to be a glass elevator with a view of the whole atrium of the hotel as it rises, right to the top of the building.  
Shaw looks through the glass at the elevator car next to her, fifteen feet away Collier is inside, punching a button. He glances up and sees Shaw just before Collier's car ascends rapidly.  
The older couple is jammed against the side-wall by Shaw's panting, snorting horse. It clomps around the tight elevator.  
“Can you just press the top floor, please?”  
The man nods mutely and complies. Their elevator takes off, rising after Collier's.

 

Cole runs in with Leon and other agent. They follow the path of destruction, growing more and more amazed. Cole yells to one of the porters. “The woman on the horse?!”  
The porter points shaking at the elevators.

 

Inside Shaw has slid off the horse to get next to the control panel. She can look up at an angle and see Collier in the car above her. Her thumb hovers over the emergency stop button. If Collier gets out at any floor, Shaw will have a moment to react and stop in time. Collier can look down and see this. He knows Shaw's got him.  
So, he just keeps going, floor after floor, using the time to think until he arrives the rooftop.

Collier comes out of the elevator, rides to the far edge of the roof and slides to a stop. He looks down twenty stories.

 

After a few moments, the second elevator arrives, the doors part and Shaw comes out, with her Nano poised and ready.  
She sees Collier revving his bike and then he brodies the bike into a fast one speeds back toward the edge of the roof. Amazingly, he increases speed, roaring right off the edge, arcing the bike suicidally out into space.  
“What the hell?”  
She says perplexed riding to the edge in time to see Collier, on his bike, clear a 60-foot jump and splash into the rooftop pool of a lower building next to the hotel!  
Shaw is out of control now, seeing the guy setting away.

 

Agent Sameen Shaw is not one to fail on her missions. That’s why she’s one of the best agents on the Activity.  
She wheels her mount and charges across the roof to get some running space. Then she turns again, back toward the edge Collier jumped from.  
She kicks the horse's flanks and yells HAAHH!!  
The horse's hoofs thunder on the roof as they go full tilt toward the edge. But the horse slams its front hoofs down together, stopping suddenly. Shaw goes right over its head, she flies forward, almost going right off the roof. She slams to the edge, with her legs dangling over, holding onto a piece of pipe with one hand. Her Nano tumbles down into darkness.  
Shaw sees Collier far below, climb out of the pool, running to the roof door of the other building. Getting away. “Son of a bitch!” she curses climbing up onto her own roof, breathing hard. She walks over to the horse.  
“What the hell were you thinking? We had the guy and you let him get away!” She looks into the horse's brown eyes and pats its neck fondly. ‘‘What kind of cop are you?”

 

\------

 

Hours later in their house, Root is typing at her laptop at the dining room table next to a half-eaten cake and some melted ice cream. Sameen unopened presents are piled at one end of the table. She raises her head as Shaw enters sheepishly.  
“Look, I know you're upset. I'm sorry, Root. I came home as quick…”  
“It's okay, don't bother, Sam.”  
Shaw goes to her wife and puts her hands on Root’s shoulders, wishing that she could tell her the truth.  
“Thank you for the party.”  
“Yeah. It was great. Ask Bear.” Root finds a smile somewhere.  
“Let's go to bed, Sameen. There's one present you have to open tonight.’’ She grins and arches one eyebrow meaningfully.

 

  
Root’s spontaneity and her open flirt was one of the things that had got Shaw’s attention when they first met.  
She was taller than Sameen and had a body type of a ballerina with a perfect pointed noise, curly brown hair, an easy bright smile that charmed everyone.  
Root had a long list of innuendos that with time had won Shaw over. Sometimes Root would call Shaw in the middle of the day just so she could drop off a shameless pick up line just to get a reaction out of her.  
Only things had changed after five years of married and Shaw didn’t know why but she definitively missed the old perky Root.

 

  
Climbing the stairs Root leads Sameen taking her by the hand. She squeezes Shaw’s hand a little when they reach the bedroom but Root doesn’t notice the muffled growl of pain coming from Shaw’s mouth, a painful reminder of her fight with Paul tonight. Root walks Shaw to the edge of the bed and sits her down. The tall woman puts her hand on Sameen’s chest and pushes her making Shaw to lie back on the bed.  
“Don't move a muscle. I'll be right back.”  
She turns on the stereo and soft music plays. Root enters the bathroom and shuts the door partway, she opens a cupboard and quickly pulls out some things she hid there earlier, a bottle of champagne on ice, two glasses and a red lace lingerie.  
“Root, just come on to bed.” Shaw’s voice shows exhaustion.  
“I'll just be a second. So, what happened tonight at the office?”  
“It was a big client in Japan, and it's the middle of the morning there. They’re being a pain in the ass. We had a problem with figures, things didn’t add up.”  
‘’What'd you do, Sam?” Root tried to sound interested to keep Shaw talking.  
“A double checking. Uh, you know… all hands on deck for this one.”

In the bathroom, Root is pulling up the black stockings then she fastens the  
garters to the tops. She’s being is earnest in her preparations.  
“...and we were trying to work as fast as we could, with them over the phone...it was unbelievable... really wild.”  
“So, the problem is solved?” Root is checking her red lipstick.  
“Not yet.” Sameen’s voice is even lower than usual, her eyes already closed.  
“Hmm…, I’m sure you’ll solve it. I'll be right there, sweetie. Just a minute.” Her final touch is to put a little perfume on her wrists. “I’m coming!”

But there’s not answer from Shaw.  
Root quickly pours two glasses of champagne.

Then Root slinks around the doorframe, making her entrance, she stands before the bed, looking down, holding the champagne glasses. She holds her breath, looking at the sight in front her.  
Her wife is sprawled on the bed, fully clothed and snoring softly. A little bit of drool is coming out the side of her mouth.  
Root stays still for a moment all dressed up with no place to go.  
She gazes down at Shaw. “Happy Birthday, Sameen.”  
Then sighs deeply and drinks her champagne in one long gulp.

 

 

 


	3. Chapter 3

The next morning Cole is waiting for Shaw to come out of her house. He has in his hands the morning paper with the headlines: Wild West Chase.  
He sighs and shaking his head concerned.  
As soon Shaw gets into the car, He shoots. “So… how was the party?’’  
She scowls punching him hard on his upper arm. “Shut up!’’  
‘’Wow, that good, huh?’’ Cole grins massing his arm while starting the engine’s car with his other hand.  
“If Control was mad about the Alps imagine after this.” He hands her the newspaper, “it’s going to be one hell of debriefing.”  
“Great, just fucking great!” She growls out.

 

\------

 

In the conference room Control scowls, down at them, arms crossed.  
“Vigilance is a group of fanatics and very organized, Ma’am.” Cole explains.  
“Which is why… If you get a chance, take them out.” She says intimidating.  
“We will get him, Ma’am.” Shaw reassures her.  
“I’m counting with that, you’re still in charge agent Shaw, but you might not have a second chance.” And with one last stony glare Controls leaves the room.  
After sixty seconds Shaw is the first to break the silence. “Come on, Cole.”

 

\------

 

Outside The Machine office building, Cole and Shaw pull to the curb in front of it.  
“What's going on?” Cole asks his partner.  
Shaw gets out of the car and turns back, leaning in the door to talk to Cole. “Look, uh... I've got to talk to Root and make up for last night. I'm just going to run in and see if she can get away for lunch. It won’t take long.”

 

Shaw enters the office of Root's firm. She stops at reception.  
“Hello Mrs. Shaw. Just a second, I'll buzz her.”  
“Don’t bother. I'd like to surprise her. Thanks, I know where her office is.” Shaw gives a polite smile and breezes past her before she has a chance to object.  
As she moves through the hall of offices with glass walls. She rounds a corner and can see Root at her desk.  
But as she approaches still concealed, Harper, Root’s secretary, puts a call on hold and whips around to her boss.  
“Root!” grinning, she says conspiratorially. “It's your mystery man.”  
“Jason?”  
Root, normally the image of composure, goes suddenly nervous as a high-school girl. She takes the phone, turning away from Harper that stays inside her boss office.  
“Hello, Jason?” Root pauses for a moment listening whatever this Jason guy is saying before replying! It’s all right. There's no one around.”  
Root glimpses harper with her ears cocked and gives her a scowl and a shooing motion. Harper turns away, grinning.

 

Shaw behind one of large plant pot that decorated the corridors and corners, silently mouths "JASON?!" She focused on listening Root’s end of the conversation.  
“You mean right now? I guess so.”  
“Okay. I'll be right there.”  
“Yes. I can't wait. Bye.”  
Root ends the call and looks around guiltily and flushed then turns to Harper.  
“Hold my calls and tell Shaw I’ll be late for our meeting. I’ll be back in one hour.”  
“Just an hour? You should tell this stud to take more time.”  
“Shut up. I should never have told you about him.”  
Then Root grabs her purse and rushes out, going right past the plant pot where Shaw is hiding, dumbfounded.  
Sameen looks like she was slammed in the stomach with a lead pipe. Her whole like is unravelling.

 

Outside Coles sees Shaw crossing the street, holding her stomach. She seems dazed, she is not so much walking to the car as wandering in its general direction. She stops, in the street. Cole gets out of the car and rushes to her. He pulls her out of the path of a bus which is HONKING irritably.

“You look like you got gut-kicked. What's the matter? You sick?”  
Shaw leans against the car for support. The next words are barely audible.  
“R..oot. Root, it's Root. It's Root, Cole.”  
“What about Root? Something happened? Is she okay?” He is truly concerned now.  
“She's having an affair.”  
Shaw's best friend in the world brightens with the news. He slaps her on the back.  
“Congratulations. Welcome to the human race.”  
“It can't be. Not Root.”  
“Nobody believes it can happen to them.”  
“It can't be. I don’t believe it.”  
“Relax. Root still loves you. She just wants this guy to bang her. It's nothing serious. You'll get used to it after a…”  
With that Shaw lost it. She wheels around on Cole, grabbing him by the lapels, and slams him against the car. “Stop. Cheering. Me. Up.” Her low and threatening voice is full of rage, frustration, and hurt.  
“What did you expect, Shaw? She's flesh and blood. And you're never there. It was only a matter of time.”  
Sameen sags. Her friend is right. He opens the car door and helps her in like an invalid, talking soothingly the whole time.  
“I say we concentrate on work. Let's catch some terrorists and then you can beat the crap out of them. You'll feel better.”  
Cole gets in and starts the car and tries one more time to cheer up, Shaw. “Women. Can't live with them. Can't kill them.”  
“I need a drink” Shaw says defeated.

 

\------

 

Shaw and Cole are back at The Activity, Banks of tape-decks recording calls, rows of technicians in cubicles processing and collating transcripts.  
“He's giving us a blank check on wiretaps. So I've set them up on all of Martine's shipping agents, her clients, and Leon made up a list of possible contacts that Vigilance might have. Now all we can do is wait.” When he’s done, Cole notices that Shaw is not listening.  
“Is national security stuff boring you?  
“Put a bug on her phone.” Is the first thing Shaw said after they came from Root’s office.  
“What are you talking about? We have that.”  
“Root's phone. Her office line and the line at my house.”  
Cole gives Shaw a stricken look, and glances around nervously. He pulls her into an empty office and whispers to her. “Okay. I have two words to describe that idea. In. Sane. Unauthorized bugs is a felony.”  
Shaw grabs him and rams him up against the wall, her teeth clenched. “Yeah, and we do it twenty times a day. Don't give me that crap. Just put the bugs. Now.’’  
“Sure, Shaw. I'm on it.” Shaw releases him and turns away. Cole straightens his jacket,  
looking at his friend like she's completely losing it.

 

\-------

 

That night Shaw is actually there on time for dinner. She glances at Root and takes a bite of her food, watching her. Silence.  
“So. You came by to see me today?” She is a too casual, masking her nervousness.  
“I was in the area, and I thought you might like to have lunch.”  
“They must've just missed me.”  
“They said you had to run out.”  
“Yeah. It was a rush thing. A client needed an urgent meeting, I barely made it.”  
Shaw watches her wife lying to her with some amazement. Her jaw muscles clenching. “So, a little excitement in an otherwise dull day. Did this meeting turns out okay?  
“Oh, sure. Fine.” Says Roots getting up suddenly.  
Shaw stays at the table, alone. She feels a tight on her stomach, knowing that Root is lying to her.

 

 

\------

 

Back at their office, Shaw walks with headphones listening to the record conversation between Root and Jason (she presumes). Cole watches her through a glass partition, shaking his head slowly. She freezes hearing Root’s voice.  
“Hello?”  
“Root? It's Jason. Is it safe to talk?”  
“Yes. Go ahead.’’  
“I can't talk long. Can you meet me for lunch tomorrow? I must see you.”  
“Yes. I suppose so. Where?”  
“The same place. One o'clock. I have to go now. See you tomorrow. Remember, I need you.”  
As Shaw listens the last line she’s got the proof in black and white. She slowly clenches her fists with a dark expression.

 

\------

 

Root is reading in bed. She glances up as Shaw comes into the room, giving her a quick smile. Too quick.  
Sounding casual as possible, Shaw says “I thought we might have lunch tomorrow.”  
“I can't, honey. I promised Harper I'd go shopping with her. Sorry.”  
Shaw watches her wife smoothly lying to her. It's surreal to her.  
“No problem.”  
She surreptitiously picks up Root's purse from a dresser and goes into the hall.”  
The front door opens and Shaw comes out, walking Bear on a leash. Shaw walks briskly along the sidewalk. She reaches Cole's car, half a block up, and hands him Root's purse.  
“Look, Shaw. I know this is rough, but…”  
Shaw holds up one finger. Her eyes and expression are so intense, Cole just softs of trails off.  
“Right. So the usual, right?”  
“I need to get back in half hour.”

 

\-------

 

The next day tight on the purse is sitting on the seat next to her as root drives through the city.  
Shaw drives while Cole watches the signal from the passenger seat.  
“Okay, she's turning on Seventeenth. Make a left, you should see her.”  
“There she is.”

 

Up ahead they see Root's car pulling into a parking low next to a cafe. Shaw parks the car a block away and gets out her binoculars watching as Root gets out of her car and looks around as she walks to the cafe. It is not a nervous look, but it is clear she is making sure she is not followed. She goes inside.  
“Give me the audio.” Shaw says.  
Cole hits a switch and they hear the clamor of the cafe at lunch rush come over the speaker.

 

At the Cafe Root makes her way to a booth in the back. Sitting in the shadows, facing the door, is Jason Greenfield, a man in his mid-thirties, dark haired, unshaven and fairly good-looking.  
She sits down opposite him. He doesn't smile or kiss her in greeting, but glances around the room like he expects a threat to leap out at any moment.  
“Are you sure you weren't followed?’’  
“I kept looking back, like you taught me. I didn't see anyone.”  
“Okay. It's just, things are a bit hot for me right now. If I get a signal...I may have to leave suddenly.”  
‘’I understand.’’  
“It's my job to risk my life, but not yours. I feel bad about bringing you into this, but you're the only one I can trust.” Jason creates an atmosphere of danger. His haggardness give him an air of mystery and desperation.  
“Where were you? On a...mission?”  
“Ssshhh! We say covert operation. And this one got a little rough.”  
‘’Worse than Cairo?’’  
“Cairo was a day at the beach next to this.”

 

Outside in the car Shaw and Cole turn to each other, shocked with the dawning awareness.  
“Guy's a spy!” Cole exclaims.  
“Yeah, but for who?”  
‘’He could be working her to get to you.”  
Shaw waves her hand, silencing Cole.  
Jason puts a newspaper on the table, sliding it over to Root. “Did you read the papers yesterday?”  
“Yes.”  
“Sometimes a story is a mask for a covert operation. See…two men killed in a mall, and two unidentified individuals in a running shootout, ending at the Marriot...”

 

Shaw and Cole react, realizing that it is the story of their operation gone awry.  
Root’s face is perplexed “that was you?!”  
“You recognized my style. See, you're very good. You're a natural at this.”  
Sitting at the car Shaw starts to get it.  
Then is dawns on Cole. “The guy's a fake! He's taking credit for our moves.”

 

At the same time Root leans close to Jason. She’s is hanging on his every word. “Tell me what happened?”  
“I'm sorry, I can't.”  
“You can trust me.”  
“I know. But it would compromise your safety too much to know certain things.”  
“Right, of course. I was worried when I didn't hear from you that night.”  
“It's strange. I knew I was in a woman's thoughts when I was shooting it out with those assassins.”

 

With that Shaw reacts to the outrageous fabrication punching the steering wheel.  
“Unbelievable.” Her partner says.

Root and Jason keep talking inside the Cafe.  
“Were they trying to kill you?”  
“Three of them. Hardly worth talking about. Two won't bother me again.”  
“And you chased one?”  
“Something came over me, I just had nail him, no matter what the risk. It was pretty hairy. I thought he had me, a couple of times. But I really can't take credit…”  
“You can't?” She tries to understand why not.  
“No. It's the training. It shapes you into a lethal instrument. You react without thinking.”

 

Beside Shaw, Cole guffaws. “I'm starting to like this guy.”  
Shaw shoot him a hard look, clenching her jaw.  
“Ah, come on Shaw. This is too good. But we still have to kill him, that's a given.”

After some thought Root leans even closer to Jason. “What is it you want me to do?”  
“Not here. I'll call you and we'll rendezvous again.” He pauses looks around before saying “we have to leave separately, so we aren't seen together. For your safety.”  
“You'll call me then?”  
“Yes. Now go.”  
Then they part ways.

 

\------

 

Jason is cruising in the Corvette with the radio blasting. He pulls into a used car lot, which is a run-down place. A hodge-podge of makes and models, a few that might aspire to be classics.  
Jason backs the Vette into an open space on the front line. He reaches into the back seat and pulls out a dayglo sign showing the sale price of the car. He sticks it back on the dash.

 

Across the street Shaw and Cole pull up. They watch as Jason jumps out of the Vette and goes into the sales office. Michael Cole appears having the best time of his life. He’s laughing loudly inside the car watching the whole thing “he's a goddamn used car salesman! This just gets better.”  
The he remembers who his partner is and what she can do and catches himself.  
“sorry Shaw, I know this is painful.”  
Shaw's eyes are narrowed lethally as she stares across the street.

 

\------

 

A couple of hours later in the car lot, Shaw is browsing among the cars. She walks casually and appears to be heading to the Corvette. Jason bounces jauntily up to Shaw, talking before she's even reached it.  
“It wants you too. Feel it vibrate? How about a little spin?”

Jason opens the passenger door and sits Shaw inside, then runs around the car. He leaps over the closed door into the driver's seat and starts the car.  
“You gotta jump in. That's rule number one. It takes a little practice, but there's no way around it."

A few minutes later Jason swings the car out onto the boulevard, kicking back.  
“See, it's not just the car, it's a total image. An identity you have to go for. This isn't some high-tech sports car... it doesn't even handle that great. But that's not the idea, is it.  
And he gives Shaw a big grin.  
Shaw returns a knowing chuckle. “Ha ha.”  
Jason laughs. Shaw laughs. A big lusty, male-bonding kind of laugh. Shaw thinks to herself “I’m so gonna shoot this loser.’’

Jason continues talking “well, then this is a vital piece of equipment. Used properly, it can change your life. See, you cruise. No racing. This ain't a Ferrari. You check out the scenery, let the scenery check you out. You got to take it slow. Old cars are like good women (he pauses and looks Shaw) or men... they heat up fast.  
Shaw just nods “keep talking.”

 

\------

 

Twenty minutes later Jason is holding court. Over tacos, he waxes eloquent on his greatest area of expertise.  
Shaw grinning, going along with the guy. Pretending to bond.

“Let's face it, Shaw, the Vette gets them wet, no offense. But it's not enough. If you want to really close escrow, you gotta have an angle.”  
“And you've got one.” She says deadpan.  
“It's killer. Look at me. I'm not that much to look at. No really. But I got them lining up, and not just skanks, either. Some are.”  
“So what's your angle?”  
“Sorry. Trade secret.”

 

Shaw handled with this kind of people hundreds of times, deep down they all wanted to brag about their conquests. Reverse psychology was the way to make it happen.

Grinning she says “sure. Set me up and then don't tell me.”

Then Jason leans forward, conspiratorially.  
“Okay, just ask yourself. What do women really want? You take these bored housewives, married to the same guy for years. Stuck in a routine. They need some release. The promise of adventure. A hint of danger. I create that for them.”

“So you're basically lying your ass off the whole time?” She takes a huge angrily bite on her taco.  
“Well, think of it as playing a role. It's fantasy. You have to work on their dreams. Get them out of their daily suburban grind for a few hours.”  
Still chewing Shaw manages to say. “Isn't that hard to keep up, in the long run?”  
“Doesn't matter. I like change. You know, constant turnover. As soon as I close the deal, it's one of two more times, then adios.  
‘’Use them and lose them.”  
“Exactly. The trick is, you gotta pick your target. They have to be nice little housewife types, school-teachers or computers nerds. But, I'm telling you, you get their pilot lit, these babes, they can suck-start a leaf-blower.”  
“What about the husbands?” Shaw asks.  
“Dickless. If they took care of business, I'd be out of business, know what I mean?”  
“Those idiots.” she says clenching her fists.

 

\------

 

They are heading back to the used car lot, with Shaw driving this time.  
“You working on someone right now?”  
“I always have a couple on the hook. You know. There's one right now, I've got her panting like a dog. It's great.”

 

Driving faster Shaw's hands clench the wheel tighter. “What does she do?”  
“Works in a big company, something with computers and stuff. Married to some boring asshole.”

The result is that Shaw takes a corner too fast. The tires squealing.  
“She's like a dying plant that just needs a little water. I mean, it’s like she didn’t even known how hot she is.”  
When Jason is looking, Shaw is open and encouraging. They laugh together and then when he looks away Shaw narrows her eyes.  
She could kill Jason with one punch. Now she's visualizing her wife getting fucked by this guy.

“But with you, she gets to be hot, right?”  
“Red hot. Her thighs steam.”  
They laugh together. Shaw's laugh is getting a bit brittle. She speeds up, her knuckles white on the wheel. Now for the big question: they are fucking or not?  
“Sooooo... she's pretty good in bed, then?  
“Hey, slow down you're gonna miss the turn!”  
With that Shaw comes barrelling into the lot at forty. She cranks the wheel and hits the emergency brake, slewing the car into a smoking bootlegger-180. It screeches backward, sliding right into its parking space perfectly.  
Jason is bugeyed. But he is non-plussed for only about two seconds. Then he's back to selling. He scrambles out and goes around to Shaw, coughing in the cloud of tire smoke.  
“See. You and this car were meant for each other. Why fight it? Should we start on the paperwork?”  
“Let me think about it. Hold it a day for me?”  
Jason grins and winks. “Because it's you.”

 

\------

 

Back on their house it’s already night. Root is in the entry way checking herself in the hall mirror. She looks at her big purse. Hating it suddenly. She pulls her pocketbook out and rummages on the top shelf of the hall closet for a small handbag, then charges out.

 

\-----

 

Shaw is driving and Cole plays for her the audio record of the bug on Root’s office. “There's nothing interesting today.”  
“Nothing from Jason?”  
Keeping one eye on the road, Shaw listens calmly until the audio file seems to be corrupted for couple of minutes. Very suspicious. She scowls. Then suddenly slams on the brakes. The car dives to the curb, bumping one wheel. Shaw gets out and charges around to Cole's side. Cole gets out, his expression blank.  
“Give me the rest of the audio.” Her voice low and dangerous.  
“What are you talking about?”  
“The corrupted piece.”  
“Aw, it's gotta be a some kind of tech issue…”  
“Now, Cole!! Shaw hammers her fist against the car-window right next to Cole. It explodes inward in a shower of glass.  
“Okay. Here.”  
He fishes his cell phone out of his pocket. Shaw grabs it from him violently.  
‘‘Jeez, Shaw. Seek help.”  
It doesn’t take her to find the correct file.  
She listens carefully Jason’s voice.

 

“Root. I need your help. Can you meet me tonight?”  
“What's happened Jason?”  
“It's serious. That's all I can say. Just meet at Third Avenue Bridge. At eight sharp.”

 

Shaw checks her watch. “Shit! It's almost eight.” She jumps back in the car and activates the GPS locator. Root's purse-blip flashes on the grid map.  
Shaw looks relieved as she says “she's still at our house.’’  
“The purse is still at the house.”  
She growls and slams the car into gear, roaring out into traffic. Horns honk as she cuts off people. She grabs her phone. “Unit Two? Unit Seven?”

 

  
Inside a van is Leon and another agent called Devon Grice. Leon answers “Seven here.”  
Unit Two is formed by Morgan and Frank in an unmarked car. “This is two.”  
Frenetic Shaw shots instructions to them. “Immediate roll. Acquire subject at Third Avenue Bridge. Vehicle is red-and-white convertible. You have six minutes.”  
“Roger, One. Rolling.” Leon responds right away.  
“Unit Two, On our way.”

 

  
It all happened so fast that it took Cole a few seconds to process. “Wait a minute! Are you out of your mind? You can't pull agents off a priority surveillance to follow your wife! It's misappropriation of government resources, it's... it's a breach of national security.”  
Shaw continues drives on ignoring him. Cole grabs her shoulder, shaking her.  
“Shaw, this is too far. You're losing it big-time. I have to stop you.”  
“What you going to do? Tell?”  
“Goddamnit, Shaw. This is our butts. So your life is in the toilet. So your wife is banging a used car salesman. Sure it's humiliating. But for…”  
She cuts his speech. “You tell on me, I tell on you.”  
“What you talking? I'm clean as a preacher's sheets, babe. Clean as a…”  
“What about that time you trashed a six-week operation because you were busy getting a blow-job?”  
“You know about that?!”  
Shaw turns to him. Her glare could melt metal. Cole gives a fatalistic shrug.  
“Control is going to kill us.”  
Shaw makes a turn, squealing tires.

 

\------

 

Root pulls her car at the bridge. She checks her watch and notices that her hand is shaking. She looks around and the place seems deserted. She is about to leave when she sees headlights flash briefly in the shadows.  
A red-and-white Vette emerges from the darkness and pulls up next to her. Jason motions for her to get in quickly.

 

Watching their interaction with night vision binoculars is agent Morgan, who lowers the scope and speaks over the commlink. He puts the car in gear to follow. “Two here. Subject is southbound on Third Avenue Bridge. A man and a woman in the vehicle.”  
He hears Shaw’s voice on his earpiece. “Roger's two.”

 

Jason makes a show of checking the mirrors.  
“Now don't be alarmed... but if I'm spotter, it would be best if they don't see you. You should keep your head down until we're out of the city.”  
He pushes Root’s head down onto his lap.  
She crouches there, with her cheek against his thigh.  
He's cruising along loving it.

 

On the car Cole is trying to watch the computerized city map on the screen, but Shaw keeps cornering so fast he loses his place. They both hear Morgan’s voice informing.  
“The woman has her head in the guy's lap.”  
Shaw’s eyes widen in horror and clenches her jaw. “Roger, two. One to Condor, do you have visual?”  
Crossing the highway heading away from the city the Vette appears over the brow of a hill. A moment later A helicopter rises up behind them. “This is Condor. We have the ball, repeat... we have visual.”

 

\-----

 

The headlights of the Vette light up a ratty single-wide mobile home, on the outskirts of a trailer park off the highway. Jason and Root get out of the car. “My place in the city is too hot right now. So is the penthouse in New York. But this place is secure.” He takes her inside.  
Root feels awkward in the small, junky space. A tape deck is playing cool jazz. Jason hands her a glass of cheap wine. He clinks her glass with his. “To our assignment.”  
“What is it you need me to do?”  
“Root, I want you to be my wife”.  
“But I'm married!”  
Jason quickly tries to smooths the situation. “Just for the operation in Paris. I need to be married. They'll be looking for a man traveling alone.”  
“We're going to Paris?”  
“Root, there's a double agent in my outfit... I don't know who. There's no one I can trust. Except you. Can you get away? Just for two days.”  
She hesitates “I don't know. I have to think.”  
“Here. Sit down. Be comfortable.”  
He clears a place for her on the bed, shoving clothes and magazines out of the way. She sits down and he tops off her glass from the wine bottle.

The agents have gathered behind a billboard. Shaw, Cole and the other three agents have donned black jumpsuits. They finish fitting battle-harn  
esses, then they grab black ski masks. They don them in perfect unison. Commando precision. Shaw leads off and they quick-time from behind the billboard, closing in on Jason's trailer.

 

Back at the trailer, Root thinks about her life and her every day routine. She thinks why not Paris? Root looks up at Jason and nods slowly.  
“Okay. I'll do it.”  
Jason shoots over and sits next to her, taking her hand.  
“You are incredibly brave. I have to remind myself the fear you must be feeling. I've lived like this for years, so I'm used to it. Every day when I get up, I think it might be my last. But it makes you appreciate life. And the moment. Because that may be all you have.”

He moves a little closer. Casting his spell. “To pull this cover story off, we have to look exactly like two people who are intimate with each other. The enemy can spot a fake easily.”  
He puts his hand on her knee. She tenses up instantly.  
“You see what I mean? That reaction would give us away in a second. Try to relax.”  
“It's just that... it's been five years since anyone but Shaw did that, I…“  
“Relax. There, that's better. Let yourself slip into the role.”  
He puts his other arm around her shoulders and pulls her slowly into a kiss. This doesn't seem real to Root. She finds herself not pulling away. He lowers her slowly until they are lying together on the bed. “There you go. That's right...” His voice seducing.  
He slides his hand up her thigh. The fingers, stroking in little circles, slips under her skirt. And…  
Root suddenly explodes, pushing on his chest, forcing him up off her.  
“No!! Stop!”  
But Jason insists to keep kissing her.  
“Get off me right now!!!”  
Jason struggles with her. She gets one knee up under him and levers him up. She pushes him to a standing position. Root sits up on the bed, straightening her skirt.  
He looks forlorn and pathetic. Now he's going to try pleading...  
“If not for me, do it for the country.”  
It’s when the back wall of the trailer is blown outward by tiny shaped-charges.  
The concussion throws Jason forward on top of her. Five black-suited figures swarm in carrying machine pistols and flashlights.  
Lit by the beam of the flashlight, Shaw sees Jason on top of Root, her knees up on either side of his hips. Jason and Root sit up stunned. They look like two rabbits in the headlights of a truck. Root screams.  
Reacting as all her years of bullshit have suddenly materialized as a living hell. Shaw is stunned. Blinking, mouth hanging open.

 

Jason sees five demonic figures backlit by the xenon light from a helicopter. Smoke and dust swirling in the rotor- wash. The figures lunge toward them, grabbing them both. Root struggles fiercely as Cole (disguised) pulls her up.  
Shaw yanks Jason to his feet.  
Cole comes out first with Root. She struggles like a wildcat, frankly surprising the hell out of Shaw. Jason is brought out, dazed and compliant. Root whips around kneeing Cole right in the balls. Cole cries out in pain doubles over, and Root runs for it.  
Shaw leaves Jason with the other agents and runs after Root, she sprints through the trees, Shaw pounding after her. Shaw grabs her and gets her in a headlock but Root bites the hell out of her arm. Shaw yells and lets her go, just as one of the agents runs up and matter-of-factly clips Root on the head with his weapon.  
A standard operating procedure.  
Which is why he can't understand why Shaw punches him hard knocking him down.  
Then Shaw supports a sagging Root, gesturing sharply to the other agents to make her point. They head for the cars.


	4. Chapter 4

An empty room with a single stool under a light, and a large two-way mirror. The door opens and Root is escorted in by Morgan, still wearing his jumpsuit. Root has a black hood over her head. Morgan undoes a pair of handcuffs, freeing her, then leaves quickly.  
Root whips the hood off and blinks in the light. She wheels at the sound of the door locking and runs to it. Pulling twice on the handle, without effect she crosses to the mirror and peers at her reflection, trying to see if anyone is there on the other side.

 

On the other side of the glass is a dark chamber where Shaw and Cole are sitting at a console. Shaw speaks into a microphone. “Sit down.”  
On root's side of the mirror we hear Shaw's voice shifted by a digital processor. It is a cold booming mechanical voice.

 

The voice (Shaw) repeats “I said sit down.”  
So Root does as she is told.  
“Who do you work for?” voice (Shaw) asks.  
“The…the Machine company.”  
The Voice (Shaw) “of course. Mrs. Shaw. And what were you going with the international terrorist, Carlos the Jackal? Taking dictation?”  
“He said he was an American agent.”  
The Voice (Shaw) “how long have you been a member of his faction?”  
“I don't know anything about a faction. I just met Jason or whatever his name is a couple of weeks ago. I barely know him.”  
“That's not what it looked like when we found you” voice (Cole) replies.  
Shaw scowls at Cole in the dark.  
With that comment Root flushes, remembering.  
“How did you meet him?” voice (Shaw)  
“About two weeks ago I was at the mall, having coffee...”

 

\------

 

FLASHBACK

 

One afternoon Root is sitting at table at a mall near where she works, having a cappucino and a croissant.  
When out of nowhere Jason appears behind her, sort of stalking up to her. He approaches quickly the last few steps and slips into the seat next to her. His manner is furtive. He keeps looking around, as if for hidden assassins. He hands her a briefcase. “Keep this for me. I can't afford to be taken with it. National security is at stake. I'll contact you if a can. Okay? Oh shit…”  
He seems to suddenly spot something and dashes off the other way.  
As Root walks back to her office building, carrying the briefcase. She keeps looking over her shoulder. She has the briefcase on her desk while she works and keeps glancing at it as she types. Finally she hunches over it and starts picking the locks with a paper clip.  
Inside the case are the following items: A tiny camera, some circuit diagrams, some papers, some street maps of Beirut, Rome and Berlin, and a pistol.  
Alarmed with wide eyes Root closes the case.

 

\------

Back in interrogation Root shrugs, finishing up her story.  
“I should have gone to the police, I suppose.”  
The voice (Cole) inquires “but you didn't. Why not?”  
“I don't know. I guess... I wanted to see what would happen.”  
The voice (Shaw) shoots “what did happen?”  
“Three days later, he called me. He told me to meet him at the park.”

 

\------

 

FLASHBACK

 

Through the trees is a sweeping view Root is sitting on a park bench when Jason shows up, sitting beside her. She hands him the briefcase.  
“Thank you. You saved my life. What's your name?”  
“Root.”  
“You can call me Jason. He says as he touches her hand softly. “You're very brave to do this...”  
Then notices the locks have been opened, “you opened it.”  
“I just glanced inside.” Root tells him.  
“Then you know.’’

 

\------

 

Back at interrogation room Shaw shakes her head and rubs her eyes, picturing the whole thing.  
The voice (Shaw) asks “why did you continue to see him?”  
Root responds innocently “He needed my help.”  
The voice (Shaw) “not because you were attracted to him?”  
“No.” Root says shaking her head for emphasis.  
“You weren't attracted to him at all?” voice (Shaw).  
Root lower her head a little ashamed “Well, maybe a little.”  
“Is this a common thing for you? Cheating?” voice (Cole).  
Root stands from the chair “No! Never!”  
“So, it was your first time” voice (Cole).  
“I wasn't cheating!” exclaims Root.  
“Tell me about your wife, Mrs. Shaw” Voice (Shaw).  
“Sameen? What can I say about Sameen? She works for a construction company.  
“Would you say… she was boring, then?” voice (Shaw) hesitates.  
Root sighs nodding. “Yeah. I suppose she is.”  
The voice (Cole) asks “so sex with her isn't exactly making your flag wave anymore.”  
Shaw cuffs him on the shoulder and signals with a scowl for him to stay out of it. Cole smirks. Shaw's put him through enough shit the last couple of days, it's time for a couple digs.  
“That's none of your fucking business! What kind of questions are these?” She starting to get angry with all this personal questions.  
The voice (Shaw) “you're in a lot of trouble, Mrs. Shaw, so I suggest you cooperate. If we want to know the most intimate details of your life, you'd better tell us.”  
Root glowers at the mirror. Her hands are shaking and she hates it that they can probably see she is afraid.  
“My wife is a good person.”  
“But she's not exactly ringing your bell lately, right? I mean…” voice (Cole) comes again.

 

Shaw covers the mic and whips around on Cole. “Are you trying to make me kill you? Let me handle this part. Do you mind?”

 

“Why did you go to Carlos’s hideout?” voice (Shaw).  
“He wanted me to go with him on a mission, to pose as him wife.”  
‘‘And you agreed?” voice (Shaw).  
“Yes.”  
Shaw can’t believe why her wife agreed. “Why?” voice (Shaw).  
Root searches herself for the explanation. “I don't know. I guess I needed something...”  
“What did you need?” voice (Shaw).  
“I needed to feel alive. I wanted to do something... outrageous. And... I don't know... it felt good to be needed. To be trusted. To be special.”

 

In verbalizing it. Root hates the unseen voices for making for try to explain her deepest, unvoiced needs.  
“There's so much I wanted to do in this life, and I want to be able to look back and say: See! I did that. It was wild and it was reckless and outrageous and I fucking did it! And I frankly don't give a shit if you understand this or not.”

 

Her partner looks at Shaw, eyebrows raised.  
Shaw is studying her wife like she's some fantastic new species.  
“This Jason. Did you sleep with him?’’ voice (Shaw)  
“No.”  
Cole says covering the mic “she's lying.” Shaw looks at him in doubt. 

 

“You didn't have sexual relations with him?” voice (Shaw).  
The the tall woman’s tone is acid when she says “Look, if you ask me everything twice, this is going to take a really long time. And I have to get home to my family.”  
Then Cole takes speaks on the mic again “You're not going anywhere.”  
It’s when Root loses it. She’s furious but at the same time afraid. Root is a combination of tears and rage, “let me out of her! Right now!”  
Shaw takes the mic again and presses “Answer the question.”

 

She watches astonished as her wife is picks up her stool and charges toward the mirror, swinging it with all her might. It bounces off harmlessly.  
She swings again, yelling with all her strength “I didn't sleep with him! And swings one more time “ You hear me, you mother fuckers bastards!!”  
And she hits the mirror again.  
Amused by her outburst Cole interrupts again challenging Root.  
The voice (Cole) says “Everyone tries lady. It's unbreakable.”  
CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! The mirror suddenly stars from side to side with huge cracks. She's about to beat her way through it.

 

At the observation room Shaw and Cole jump back. Cole covers the mic and turns to Shaw “she could be telling the truth.”  
The voice (Shaw) tries to calms her down “calm down, Mrs. Shaw. Calm down. There is only one more question.”

 

Root drops the stool and stands there panting. Her fury spent, she begins to cry.  
“What?” says between sobs.  
Shaw takes a deep breath before verbalizing the next question. In contradiction of everything Sameen Shaw is, she’s is afraid to ask the question but at the same time she just needs to know. Deep down Shaw fears of what Root's answer will be.  
“Do you still love your wife?”  
Comes out softy a “yes.”  
The voice (Shaw), “louder please.”  
“I love her. I have always loved her and I will always love do. Root wipes at her eyes a little before saying “can I go home, please?”

 

Inside the observation room Shaw states at Root. And Shaw smiles relieve. Cole greets his partner cheerfully “congratulations, she loves you. Now what?”  
“There is only one solution to your problem, Mrs. Shaw. You must work for us.” The voice (Shaw) says.  
Cole looks at surprised “Shit Shaw... what're you doing?”  
“I'm giving her an assignment.” Shaw says like it wasn’t obvious.  
The voice (Shaw) continues “I am offering you a choice. If you work for us we will drop the charges and you can go back to your normal life. If not, you will go to federal prison, and your wife will be left humiliated and alone. Your life will be destroyed.”

 

Root’s tone is sarcastic “oh, gee thanks. Mmm, let me see…”  
The voice (Shaw) “yes or no.”  
“What do you think? Of course, yes!”  
“You will be contacted with the assignment.” The voice (Shaw) explains.  
“My wife can't know about this.”

 

The voice (Shaw) shoots, “no one must know! Especially her. You must appear to live your life normally, conveying nothing. The security of this nation depends on it. Can you do that?”  
‘’I think so.’’  
The voice (Shaw) presses “think carefully. You will be lying to the woman you love. The person who trusts you the most.”  
Root sounds fearless “I can do it!  
That impressed Shaw.  
The voice (Shaw) “the code name of your contact will be Boris. Your code name will be…”  
“Natasha?” Says an excited Root.

 

Inside observation Shaw grins.  
The voice (Shaw) “No. Doris.”  
Root’s expression on interrogation shows that she didn’t like her wimpy code-name.

 

\------

 

The unit-seven van pulls up in the spooky shadows under the bridge, stopping next to Root's red Accord. The door slides open and Root gets out, helped my black-garbed hands. She is wearing her hood, which is whisked off by one of the hands. She whirls in time to see the door slide shut and the van speed off. She watches it drive off into the night.

 

\------

 

A unmarked van pulls up near the edge of a large quarry. The door opens and Jason is pushed out, followed by Shaw, who is in her black jumpsuit and wearing a ski-mask. Cole follows as Shaw guides Jason to the edge of a sheer drop. Shaw whips off the hood and Jason takes in his surroundings.  
With an angrily voice she says. “You son of a bitch. Did you really think you could elude us forever, Carlos?”  
“Wait! You got the wrong guy. My name's Jason. Look, just let me go. There's no need to kill me. I haven't seen your…”

 

Then Shaw whips off her ski-mask.  
“… face. Shit! Shit!!” Jason ducked his head to not look at Shaw’s face. Then it dawns... He looks up, brightening hopefully. “It's you! Hey, you still interested in that Vette at all?”  
“You can drop it now, Carlos. The game is over. Your career as an inter-national terrorist is too well documented.” Cole says to Jason.  
“No... I sell cars. That's all! Not even foreign cars. Nothing international, I swear. I'm no terrorist. Everything I said was a lie... you have to believe me. I'm actually a complete coward. If I ever even saw a gun I'd…”  
Shaw whips her pistol out in one liquid motion and snaps the muzzle right in front of Jason's eyes.  
“…faint. Aahhh! Don't kill me. I'm not a spy. I'm nothing. I lie to women to get laid. It's pathetic. Jason looks down, “see, look... would a spy pee himself?”  
Shaw is finally sickened by his groveling and pulls Jason away from the edge, then gestures with her gun. “Beat it.”  
“No. Soon as I turn you'll shoot me.”  
Ignoring him Shaw starts back to the truck. Jason stays right with her, facing her, terrified to turn away. Like a dog following her.  
“Please don't. You can have the car for free…”  
“Take off, dipshit!” Cole says.  
Cole finally shoves Jason back and Shaw contemptuously cranks three rounds into the ground by his feet, forcing him to dance backward. The two agents get into the van and tear off in a cloud of dust. Leaving Jason alone in the moonlight, miles from nowhere.

 

\------

 

The next day Shaw leaves the house early in the morning before Root wakes up. She and Cole expand the entire morning covering their tracks on last night operation. Fortunately, they manage to stay out of Control’s radar for the time being to Cole’s relief.  
They work on the details of Root’s mission. With everything in place Shaw heads home in time for dinner.

 

\------

 

At the table Root is avoiding her wife’s eyes. Shaw looks over at her and gives her a tiny smile and begins a conversation “So last night was pretty exciting, huh?”  
Root speaks a alarmed “What?” Then she remembers she cover story.  
“Oh, the flat tire? Yeah, I thought the damn towtruck was never going to get there.”  
Shaw smiles reaching for more chicken.  
The phone rings.  
“Perfect timing.” Shaw thinks.  
Root controls the urge to run to it. “Hello?”  
A metallic voice says “Doris?”  
Root’s hands start to shake. “Oh. Yes?”

 

Cole, at The Activity, uses the speech synthesizer to disguise his voice.  
“Listen carefully. Go to the Hotel Marquis in one hour and pick up an envelope marked Doris at the front desk. And dress sexy!  
Root reacts to that. “What?”  
Coles ends up the call.  
Root pauses for moment thinking of a lie. “Uh... well, okay then. You sound terrible. I'll run out right now. Just call the prescription in to the pharmacy. Sure, no problem. Bye.”  
Shaw smirks listening to her lie. She's good. The smirk drops as Root comes back.  
“Zoe is sick in bed. I have to go over there, honey.”  
Shaw just nods “Sure.”  
Then Root walks unhurriedly out of the room. Behind her back Shaw is grinning. The second Root is out of her sight line, she runs up the stairs. Shaw waits a moment then picks up the phone.

 

\------

 

Back at The Activity Cole’s phone rings. “You know Shaw, you've reached a new low with this one. I can't believe you're crazy enough to use the room at the Marquis.”  
“Why not? You think I can’t afford a suite like that on my salary? Is Leon done with the speech synthesizer yet?” She answers amused.  
Cole looks over at a sound recording booth nearby. “Not quite.”  
Leon is doing the voice recording from a hand-written page.

 

\------

 

In a big luxury hotel downtown, with an opulent lobby. Root enters, looking totally different. She has been commanded to be sexy, and she is. Her black slinky dress is cut at mid-thigh, showing her long legs. Her brown hair was loose and curly than usual and she using black pointed heels and red lipstick. She looked hot.  
She goes to the front desk and signals the assistant manager with her eyes. He comes over to her. “Do you have an envelope for Doris?”  
The man nods. Saying nothing, he reaches under the counter and hands her the envelope. She opens it as she walks across the lobby. In contains a room key, a small bug device, and a phone number.

 

In the hotel lobby holding tightly her cell phone Root finishes dialing the number. She scans the lobby as the phone rings. Once again Cole with the metallic voice give her instructions.  
“Listen. You are a prostitute named Michelle. Go to the room. A man will be there. He is a suspected arms dealer.”  
Her heart skips a beat at the implications of it. “Do I have to... you know…”  
“No. He has particular tastes. He likes to watch. You will say his regular girl, Carla, is sick. If he likes you, he will tell you what to do. You must plant the bug on the room’s phone, by the bed, before you leave. If you do not accomplish your mission, the deal is off.”

 

\------

 

On the tenth floor, Root exits an elevator and walks down the long hallway toward the suite. She stops by a mirror and checks her look. She slinky walks getting into the role when she remembers her wedding ring. Root pulls on it and puts it on her right hand and turns the diamond down facing her palm. Discrete. Then, reading the number off the key, she goes to the room and unlocks the door.  
Root enters the suite hesitantly. The lights are off but she can see that the suite is large and richly furnished, with a breathtaking view of the city. It is the room Shaw was using, posing as Grey. Leon’s altered voice comes from the next room.  
“In here.”  
Root follow the sound and goes into the bedroom. There is a dark figure sitting in a chair, just a silhouette.  
“Step into the light.” Leon’s voice tells her.

 

It is a corner room. The drapes on one side are closed, shadowing the man, but open on the other just enough to let in a slash of moonlight. She steps forward into it.  
Hidden by the darkness is Shaw posing as the mystery arms dealer. Even though the silhouette of the man is small, Root can’t see that the figure is Shaw.  
One of Shaw’s hand are down, out of sight behind the chair-arm, as she manipulates a phone playing the audio recording with Leon’s voice.  
“I'm Michelle. Carla's sick. She thought you might like me, so…”  
Shaw goes Ssshhh, silencing her gently. She uses the phone hidden and Leon’s voice says as Shaw lipsynchs. “Let me do the talking. You are very pretty. You can start by unzipping your dress.”

 

Then Shaw pauses the recording.  
Root starts to yank the zipper down.  
“No no. Do it slowly. Very slowly.”  
Then Root turns her back to him, and draws the zipper down languorously, revealing her creamy back. She is not wearing a bra.  
At the scene Shaw’s heartbeat speeds up.  
“Now slip the dress down...slowly.”  
Root is starting to get into the ritual. She lets the dress slip off her shoulders. It slides down her body to the floor. Next Root steps out of it, still in high heels.  
“That's good. Now the panties. ‘’  
The ritual continues as she strips slowly. She conceals the bugging device in her hand as she sets her clothes on the bed near the phone. Despite the situation, Root is still concentrated on her mission.

 

“Now turn, in the moonlight. Let your body flow like water’  
Root turns. Her skin is beautiful in the silvery light.  
“Now dance for me. Go on.”  
Root has no idea what to do, but she improvises quite well. The scrutiny of the figure, who is fully clothed, and her raw vulnerability are a powerful erotic combination.  
“Let your hands be a lover's hands on your own skin as you move. Yes, that's it.”  
Shaw wander over her wife’s body. This game, meant to give Root a dangerous fantasy, is actually turning Shaw on mightily. She is amazed to see Root playing the role, getting into it. This is not the Root she knew for five years.  
“Now, lie on the bed and close your eyes.”  
And Root does as she was told. 

 

Shaw rises and goes to her with the phone on hand.  
“Keep them closed. Do not open them, understand?” Shaw sits on the bed, next to Root but without touching her. She strokes her hair lovingly. Then runs her fingertips over Root’s eyes and down her cheeks.  
To Root it feels delicate and delicious. And part of her is enjoying this a lot. But she is torn between wanting to flee and knowing that nothing the man has done so far is enough to cause her to abort her mission. “I thought you only liked to watch.”  
“Sssshhh’’ It's all Shaw can do. Next she bends over Root and brings her lips slowly down to Root’s touching them slowly. Then Shaw takes her in a passionate kiss.  
Root takes a few moments to recover her senses after the shock of being kissed. She grabs the lamp on the bedside table and smashes it over Shaw’s head. The blow makes Shaw flies off onto the floor, groaning and semiconscious.

 

Root gets out of the bed and grabs her clothes starting to dress rapidly. Everything happens so fast that she still doesn't recognize Shaw in the darkness, who is face down. Shaw groans and starts to rise but Root kicks her in the ribs as she frantically finishes putting her dress on.  
She sticks the bug under the night table and grabs her shoes.  
“Mission accomplished, motherfuckers.”  
Root turns to leave but Shaw grabs her ankle. So Root raises one shoe to kick Shaw again but she sees who it is.  
Her face is total shock. Root can't even form a coherent sentence right now. One word is all she manages to say.  
“Shaw?!”

 

There’s a crash and the door lock is shattered by tremendous force and three men burst into the room. They are wielding pistols and are clearly part of Collier's terrorist group. Shaw is still a little groggy and she doesn't want to start anything with Root there, and risk her getting shot. So she acquiesces as they pull her to her feet.  
Thinking that it was the feds again Root tries to handle the situation. “She's got nothing to do with this. It's me you want, right?”  
But Shaw talks to the lead of the terrorists “let the hooker go. She's not important.”  
“Shaw, be quiet. Let me handle this.”  
“Shut up, both of you.” One of the man shouts.

 

During this exchange, the thugs have handcuffed Shaw's hands behind her back. The leader gestures to one of the men to bring Root along. Root and Shaw are dragged roughly out of the room with pistol-muzzles stuck in their ribs.  
The door from the corridor bangs open and the thugs hustle Shaw and Root down the fire-escape stairs.  
Root tries again “listen, you don't need her, she's nothing. She's a rep for a construction company, really...”  
A stairwell door opens and the terrorists rush Shaw and Root through the basement labyrinth.  
Root asks her wife. “What were you doing there?”  
“You wouldn't believe me.”  
A pistol muzzle is jammed hard behind Root's ear.  
“Talk again, I kill you.”  
They are hustled across a loading dock to a rental van waiting with the door open. A fourth terrorist slides the van door shut after they get in and gets in behind the wheel. The van takes off.

 

\------

 

The rental van pulls up to a G-3 JET warming up outside a private hanger. The van doors open and the hostages are brought out. Shaw sees a long black limo pulling up behind the van. The driver, an enormous man, hurries to open the passenger door. A slender pair of ankles emerge, followed by the rest of Martine Rousseau, looking devastatingly beautiful but now quite sinister.  
To Root it is like a living James Bond film, with the jet, the limo, the terrorists, and now an exotic femme fatale, dressed to kill, approaching them.  
Martine comes to greet them with a wry smile. “Hello, Sameen.”  
“Martine. I wish I could say it's a pleasure to see you again.”  
Root decides quickly that she hates that woman. She turns to Shaw and asks “You know her?”  
Martine signals with her eyes and the terrorists march the prisoners toward the plane. She notices Root interaction with Shaw. “Who's your little friend?”  
“I'm Root. Shaw's my wife. And you are?” Root says feeling jealous.  
Martine raises her eyebrows surprised. “Oh, so now it's Shaw? Not Grey?”  
They enter the luxurious passenger cabin of the plane. Root has never seen anything like this.  
“Look, Shaw's not part of this. she's just a construction rep.”  
Martine laughs at that. “No, my dear, she is a federal agent. She killed two of my colleagues the other night.”  
“No, you don't understand, we've been married for 5 years…”  
“Look, Martine, this is just some whacko hooker I met in the bar.” Shaw tries to be indifferent to Roots presence.  
The other terrorists push Root and Shaw into seats and strap them in.  
“Sameen, what's the matter with you? Tell them the truth. We're married, we have a dog…”  
Looking at Root contemptuously Shaw says. “I don't know what this crazy bitch is on. You should just cut her loose, so we can get down to business.”  
“Oh yeah? Oh yeah? Then where did I get this?”  
Root grabs the locket, dangling on a chain around her neck, and opens it to show Martine.

 

The picture in the locket shows Shaw and Root together, smiling.  
Shaw rolls her eyes thinking. “Great, Root.”  
Martine smiles graciously at Root. “Something before take-off?’’  
The hostess whips a pneumatic injector off the tray and zaps Root in the shoulder. “Oooowww!! That hurt. You biit…” She slumps.  
Martine looks at Shaw. “She was telling the truth, wasn't she Shaw? She really doesn't know. Interesting.”  
Martine nods and the hostess zaps Shaw. She slides into unconsciousness.

 

\-------

 

A ship is tied up to a half-crumbling pier. Next to the pier is a dilapidated corrugated-metal warehouse building, two stories high. There are floodlights on the dock but beyond is black night on the abandoned facility.  
There is a lot of activity, three u-rent trucks are parked by the warehouse, as well as some other vehicles. About thirty men, clearly Vigilance are busy at various activities, nany of them carry AK47 assault rifles.

 

Collier is supervising them as they finish unloading some covered big objects from the ship. A rusting gantry crane trundles it into the warehouse. Collier looks up as a van approaches the pier. Martine steps down from the front door. The sliding door is opened and the others pull a groggy Shaw and Root out of the vehicle. Both of them are covered by hoods.  
Collier walks up to them and pulls their hoods off. Shaw takes in her surroundings and looks back into the eyes of Collier. Lethal energy flows between them.  
He ask “Who is this woman?”  
“Her wife” says Martine.  
“Her wife? Good. Bring them.”

 

Collier leads the entourage into the warehouse, where brilliant floodlights illuminate…  
Three huge stone figures, lined up in the middle of the space. The tarp is removed from the object they just unloaded, revealing a fourth statue. The figures are cracked and obscured by centuries, but they are unmistakably warriors mounted on horseback. The legs and arms are missing on some, but the massive heads and necks remain.  
Martine says “incredible, aren't they? Warrior figures from the Persian Empire of Darius the First, around 500 BC. I call them "The Four Horsemen".”  
She approaches the nearest figure, caressing its flank. A man with a jackhammer steps up to her. “They're absolutely priceless.”  
She shrugs and nods to the man with the jackhammer. He blasts right into the body of one of the Horseman, destroying it. Stone fragments fall away, revealing a cavity cut with great precision inside the figure. Inside is a bright metal container.  
The latches are released and the lid lifted and inside is a big-ass wired bomb. Collier signals to Shaw to step closer and look. “Do you know what this is?”  
“Can you give me a clue? It could be a water heater for all I know.”  
Collier grabs Root, jerking her roughly forward. He whips out a knife and inserts the point under Root's jaw, forcing her head back and drawing blood.  
“Do you know why you have been brought here?”  
Root almost too afraid to speak “N-no.”  
“So that this woman can verify that Vigilance has a radiologic bomb.” Collier points at Shaw.  
“How can Sameen do that? She's a representative for Christ sakes!”  
“If we were wrong about her...then the last thing you see will be your blood spraying in her face.”

 

Shaw steps forward her face grim. “This is a dirty bomb make of Semtex, a phone detonator and half pound of Celsium. Release her and I'll cooperate.”  
Collier lowers the knife from her jaw. He turns away from her like she has ceased to exist and yells at the other terrorists to remove the others weapons..  
Root is just staring at Shaw, her mouth open. Shaw turns to her, not knowing what to say so she just shrugs sheepishly. “What can I say? I'm a spy.”  
Root just looks at her for a long time. She moves closer staring and staring, letting it sink in. Then she hauls off and slugs Shaw right in the jaw so hard is almost knocks her down.  
“You bastard!! You lying son of a bitch!!  
Terrorists grabs her and restrain her and She starts to cry.  
“I'm sorry, honey.”  
“Don't call me honey! You don't ever get to call me honey again. You understand?! You bitch!”  
Martine looks at them both and laughs. 

 

Nearby, one of the terrorist is going through the contents of Root's handbag and Shaw's wallet. He rips open the bottom stitching and pulls out a bug. “Look at this!”  
Collier looks at the tracker and then smashes it to the floor.  
Root looks at the crushed transmitter then she stares at Shaw with dawning realization.  
“You bugged me?!!”  
The terrorist now, is going through the content of Root's cell phone. He looks into the photo gallery then he calls Collier again. “Look this guy must be someone important to her, her father maybe.” The terrorist talks as he stares at one of Harold’s photos.  
Collier grins. “I know this man. Harold Finch. He’s a CEO for a big tech company known for doing business with the government. Find where he is and bring him.” 

 

\-----

 

A jet has become a mobile tactical-command center, with Cole and Leon, and several other agents working out of portable equipment cases. Leon looks up from a computer screen suddenly. “We've lost the signal.”  
Cole, who has been pacing the aisle whirls to the screen. “Son of a bitch! Where?”  
“It's a pier….take a look.”  
Cole goes up to the cockpit. “Call our DEA contact, tell him I want those choppers flight-ready the second we land.”

 

\-----

 

Back at the warehouse, Shaw is speaking directly into the camera, finishing up her message. “...and I can verify that they have the arming box and all equipment necessary to detonate the bombs. This is absolutely the real thing, gentlemen.”  
The camera swings off Shaw to Collier. “Now, it’s time to take action against those who obtain information to wield against the people. . The government turned our democracy into a police state, illegal wiretapping, plus conspiracy, espionage and treason. We gonna teach them a lesson they’ll never forget….”  
The cameraman is sweating, wondering if he should interrupt, the camera battery warning flashing faster.  
Collier continues his speech for a couple more minutes until the cameraman nervously lowers the camera, ashen faced.  
Collier's eyes are black with murder.  
The cameraman says “Collier, the battery.”  
“Get another one, you moron!”

 

\------

 

A filthy, crumbling cinderblock building near the warehouse. Shaw and Root are brought in by two guards. Martine follows then into the bleak room. Guards shackle them to steel chairs with handcuffs. A old man enters the room carrying a small suitcase. He has skull-like features. He opens the suitcase and Shaw has a good view of the contents: medical instruments, needle-probes, drills, Dremel tools with saw blades.  
Martine introduces him.“This is Samir. See if you can guess his specialty.”  
“Oral hygiene?” Shaw says sarcastic.  
“Not exactly.”  
“What's going on, Shaw?” Root’s voice shows how much she is scared.

 

Martine continues talking. “Samir is just going to ask Shaw a few questions. See, we're not even sure which agency Shaw works for. Now, Samir is absolutely first class, but on the other hand we have Shaw, here, who has managed to lie convincingly to the woman she loves for 5 years. So it will be interesting to see how long she can resist.”  
Samir holds up a syringe. “This will help.”  
He injects Shaw in the arm with the syringe.  
“You know, you should swab that with alcohol. I might get an infection.”  
He says before leaving the room “I'll return when this has taken effect. Then we'll talk.”  
“I'm looking forward to it.” Shaw says deadpan. 

 

Then she talks to Martine “why are you helping these raving psychotics.”  
“Because they're very well-funded psychotics, and I'm getting a lot of money.”  
She kneels down in front of Shaw, stroking her leg. “You think I care about their cause? Or yours? Not at all. See, America is on top now but so was Rome, once. All civilizations crumble. One nation succeeding over another. What does it mean in the long run? The only important thing is to live well. And... living well takes money.”  
“You're damaged goods” Shaw tells her.  
Shaw's words are beginning to be slightly slurred. The drugs are taking effect.  
Martine says indicating Root. “Did you tell her about us, Sameen?”  
“There is no us, you psychotic bitch.”  
“Sure. Say that now.”  
The Martine puts her arms around Shaw and kisses him passionately. She breaks the kiss looking at Root to savor the effect. Root is trembling with rage.  
“Thanks for everything, Sameen. It was good while it lasted.”

 

Martine leaves and Shaw looks dopily at Root. “There was nothing. I swear.”  
Root doesn't believe her and why should she. She watches Shaw's head slumping forward.  
“What did he give you?”  
A groggy Shaw says “Sodium amytal or maybe some other truth agent.”  
“It makes you tell the truth?”  
“Yes.”

Then Root thinks she might well use this situation to get some answers from Sameen, “Is it working yet?”  
“Ask me a question I would normally lie.”  
“Are we going to die?”  
“Yup.”  
“I'd say it's working.”  
“They'll either torture us to death, shoot us in the head, or leave us until the bomb goes off.” Shaw says nonchalant like it was no big deal.  
“Okay, okay. I get it. How long have you been a spy, Shaw?”  
“Eight years.”  
“My God. Have you had to... have sex with other people in the line of duty?”  
“I don't take those assignments.”  
Root pauses a moment before asking “What about Martine?”  
“She's really hot, isn't she?”  
“Did you fuck her Shaw?!”  
“No. But… I wanted to.”  
Root begins to cry “Are you a total lying asshole Shaw?”  
“Looks that way.” 

 

Then Samir is back into the room and lifts Shaw's head and sees that she is shitfaced.  
“Is there anything you would like to tell me before we start?”  
“Yes. I'm going to kill you pretty soon.”  
“I see. How exactly?”  
“Well, I thought I'd break your neck, then use you as a human shield, then kill the guard with that knife there on your table and take his gun.”  
Samir approaches Shaw with a long steel needle probe “and what makes you think you can do all that?”  
“Because I picked the lock on these handcuffs...”  
She holds them up to show Samir. Then she explodes out of the chair and breaks the torturer's neck, spins him between herself and the guard who then hesitates to fire. Giving Shaw the split second she needs to grab the knife from the table and throw it into the guard's eye, killing him instantly.  
Root is flat blown away. It only took a few seconds for Shaw to reverse the situation. Her Shaw! She picks up the guard's 9mm pistol and staggers over to Root but then Shaw stops moving suddenly.  
Root realizes with a sudden jolt of terror that he has frozen. “What is it?”  
“God, you have great legs.”  
“Shaw... snap out of it!” Root sees how shitfaced she is.  
“Go it, baby.”  
Root and Shaw emerge from the building, creeping through the shadows. Suddenly Root stops Shaw for a second and gets very close to her, whispering, crouched in the shadows.  
“Tell me something before this stuff wears off and you start lying again.”  
“What?”  
“Do you still love me?”  
“Yes.”  
“As much as you used to?”  
“No. Much more.”  
Root looks into her eyes and knows she is telling the truth and a bright smile appears on Root’s face. “It wore off.”  
At that moment, they hear yelling from the cinder-block building.  
“They found the bodies. Come on…”

 

\-----

 

Shaw takes her hand and they sprint for cover at the edge of the mangrove swamp. Then a light hits them two terrorists running around the corner, open fire with AK47s just as Shaw and Root reach a cluster of palm trees. The trunks explode with bullet hits as they run through the darkness.  
As the two terrorists move through the trees, Shaw lunges from the shadows and grabs one from behind. She wrests his rifle away and swings it at the other knocking his AK down. The first terrorist draws a knife and slashes at her, but Shaw grabs his knife arm and swings the blade into his partner. Then she elbows the first guy and seizes him in a two hand neck-breaker.  
Two more run around the corner of a building. Shaw stomps her foot down on one of the AKs, which is lying across a log. It flips into the air and she catches it in firing position and takes them out with two well-aimed bursts.  
Root comes out of the shadows staring at Shaw in amazement. Her shirt is ripped, she is scratched and bleeding, holding an assault rifle expertly and scanning the brush like a feral animal.  
“I married a little firecracker.”  
Shaw grabs Root and kisses her passionately. “Let's go.”

 

\------

 

On the warehouse a rental truck is being loaded with weapons including machine guns and several hand-launched stinger missiles. The of dirty bomb has been lowered into a pit cut in the concrete floor. Collier and most of the terrorists are gathered around it.

 

A guard on the catwalk doesn't hear Shaw sneak up on him, she catches the guard's MAC-10 machine pistol before it can hit the floor. She and Root crouch behind a steel pillar, watching the proceedings below. Root keeps glancing at the dead guard killed so effortlessly a moment before by her wife. It is all surreal.  
Below Collier is shouting to his men. He pulls a chain from around his neck and holds up a mini usb flash drive then jumps down into the pit and inserts it into a tablet arming the bomb. “It is done... in ninety minutes.”  
Collier jumps out of the pit and signals and terrorists pour concrete into the pit, covering the bomb. Next he shouts for the bombs ‘two’ and ‘three’ be loaded into trucks, one bomb per truck. The last bomb ‘four’ is loaded into a helicopter outside.

 

Roots asks “What are you going to do?”  
Shaw shrugs “go down there and kill everybody, I guess.”  
She hands Root the MAC-10. Root holds it clumsily. “Oh shit.’’  
“Wait here. If you have to use this, use it. Don't choke. Okay?”  
She nods gamely and Shaw starts down the steel stairs to the floor below.

 

Shaw slips behind some packing crates. Then swings into action hurls the grenade as hard  
as she can, down to the other end of the building. She uses the distraction to move forward. But it goes wrong almost right away.  
A terrorist comes around a corner behind her and shoots, Shaw dives for cover as the guy fires, but her trips on a pipe and goes sprawling losing the AK47, which slides under some equipment and seven terrorists run toward her with guns raised. She yells at Root “SHOOT!!”

 

Root fires a burst at the terrorists, actually hitting one! But the recoil knocks her back into a metal column, and the gun flies out of her hands. It falls to the metal steps and hits going of the cartwheels killing all the terrorist nearby.  
Root has inadvertently saved her wife. Shaw looks up from behind cover to see all seven dead. Now it's her turn to be amazed. Shaw signals for her to run get off the exposed catwalk. She makes it through the door to the outside stairs as bullets start hitting the steel walls behind her.  
A terrorist with a knife runs at the unarmed Shaw. Shaw snatches up a jack-hammer and drives it into the guy's chest. Then she grabs an AK from one of the fallen terrorists and opens fire. 

 

Collier shouts to the drivers of the trucks to get going.  
The other terrorists return fire at Shaw, who sprints from cover to cover reaching a side door, where she rakes one of the passing trucks with a burst. But terrorists behind her in the building have a clear shot and rounds hit the wall next to her as she dives through the door landing outside.  
She takes cover behind an refueling truck. Not a good place, she is pinned down by automatic weapons fire. She looks around for Root, who is 50 yards away. She is unarmed and unable to help. Shaw cranks up the pump on the refueling truck and grabs the nozzle of the hose.  
She opens the flow and a stream of fuel blasts out of the nozzle and Shaw fires his AK right across the nozzle. The muzzle-blast ignites the av-gas and he has a flame thrower with a 70 foot reach.  
Shaw, lit demonically by the inferno, paints the whole area, setting vehicles afire, and scattering the terrorists.

 

Through the flames and smoke she sees one of the men hand Collier a rocket. Collier snaps it to his shoulder, preparing to fire.  
Shaw runs for her life toward the edge of the dock thirty feet away as Collier fires. The rocket shoots toward the truck and Shaw leaps toward the dark water as behind her the gas truck explodes in a huge fireball.  
She hits the water and dives down. An instant later a sheet of fire sweeps across the surface above her, Shaw kicks hard, trying to swim beyond the inferno above her so he can surface.  
Root watches the burning wreckage of the gas truck. “Oh my God. Shaw.”  
Then a muzzle taps the back of her head. She gasps and turns to see Martine holding the weapon expertly. “My condolences to the window.” 

 

Martine grabs her and yanks her to her feet. Root slaps Martine hard. Martine has a slash across her cheek blood trickles down. She grabs Root's hand and viciously turns it, seeing the wedding ring turned inward, the diamond on the palm-side. Her face darkens with fury and she points the gun at Root's face preparing to kill her…but Collier's hand grabs her wrist, stopping her.  
“Not now. We may need a hostage.”  
Martine grabs her and twists her around pushing her toward the limo nearby. “Let's go.’’  
Shaw is still swimming and reaches the edge of the fire and surfaces gasping for breath. Treading water she scans the dock. Amid the fire and smoke, she sees Martine walking Root at gun point toward a limo.

 

\------

 

Collier passes the limo jumping into the helicopter with his few remaining men and the fourth bomb inside leaving the inferno behind him. The chopper pulls pitch, fanning the flames of the inferno below as it arcs away.  
A 300 pound terrorist/chauffeur, Akbar, opens the door and Martine gets into the limo with Root. Akbar scrunches into the front seat and starts the car.  
The terrorists' trucks rumble up an on-ramp past a sign that says highway. The limo is the last member of the convoy. 

 

\------

 

It looks like the aftermath of a battle burning wreckage, black smoke, bodies. Not a living soul around. The smoke swirls as two big bell 206 helicopters settle on the middle of the dock. Cole jumps out of the nearest with an AR-15, scanning the wreckage. Several of his men, and a couple of DEA agents, spread out. Cole breaks into a grin as he sees Shaw materializing out of the swirling smoke. Dripping wet clothes ripped and bloody. Shaw’s a mess but she’s okay.  
“I thought this look like your hand work, Shaw.”  
“Let's go. I'll brief you in the air.”  
“You're welcome.”  
The two are working out of brief-case mobile com-units. Several agents with headsets are reading maps, giving commands, coordinating the evacuation, mobilizing their own forces.  
Cole shouts “You tell the son of bitch this is Bright Boy Alert. Repeat, a Bright Boy Alert. And I need a patch of the White House ASAP. That's right…”  
Shaw has to yells because of the noise “... the Coast Guard has to clear them back to a twenty miles radius. Anybody that can't make the minimum safe distance we need an airlift on, immediately…’’  
Cole whips around to Shaw, lowering his headset mic. “I can get 3 Marine Corps Harriers here in about 12 minutes. They're on maneuvers.”  
She says “get them I'll brief them on the way in.”

 

\------

 

Traffic on the two causeways is almost non-existent this early in the morning. The three rental trucks, followed by the limo about a mile back, are almost the only vehicles. Inside the limo Martine has a 9mm pistol aimed at Root. She opens the sunroof, letting in the morning air and light. Then pours herself a Scotch from the bar, “like one?”  
“Fuck you!” 

 

\------

 

Shaw and Cole are both talking a mile a minute, coordinating the evacuation of the highway and the surrounding area.  
Cole says“...well get the Highway Patrol to go through the streets and tell everybody on their damn loudspeakers. Just the basics get away from windows, don't look at it.“  
Cole stops talking to looks out the window in time to see three hunch-winged Harrier jets pass them at 600 knots.  
Shaw instructs the pilots. “Roger, Mike Three Five, you are cleared to engage. Be advised, your targets have Stingers and light machine guns.”  
Pilot answer “copy that, Bright Boy command.”

 

\------

 

The terrorists see the Harriers approaching on a low attack run, and scramble to get out their Stingers. The Harriers open fire with cannons and rocket pods on the trucks below. The 20mm cannons rip the ocean on either side of the causeway into plumes of spray.

One of the Bomb trucks is hit. It explodes and flies off the bridge into the water. The terrorists on one of the other trucks fire a Stinger missile.  
It arrows up blowing one wing off the lead Harrier. The pilot ejects as the plane cartwheels into the sea and explodes.  
The two remaining Harriers make an attack run, launching four Maverick missiles at the bridge. The missiles hit the support trestles ahead of the trucks and a whole section of the concrete span collapses into the water. The first truck is consumed in the blast and the last truck slides to the edge of the gap and stops. 

 

Inside the limo Martine is trying to see what's going on ahead. All they can see is smoke and explosions. Akbar is speaking heatedly into a phone and getting no answer. Root uses this moment of distraction to lunge forward grabbing the gun. Martine fires wildly as they struggle for control of the weapon. The second shot catches Akbar behind the ear and he slumps forward. His foot mashes down on the accelerator pedal and the car surges faster.

 

\-----

 

The third Harrier fires its rockets and blows the remaining truck into tinfoil. Battle over. Three bombs down.  
Shaw sighs in relief “good shooting, Mike Three Five. I need you to stay on station.”  
She turns to pilot of her chopper “Okay. You see that limo?”

 

\------

 

The limo tracks lazily back and forth across the lanes from one guardrail to the other, throwing sheets of sparks where it hits. In is funneling along the causeway unslowed, like an out- of-control-train.  
Inside, Root knocks Martine's hands against the edge of the open sunroof and the pistol goes flying out. “You... bitch!!”  
Root is raging, grabbing Martine's head and pounding it against anything hard she can find inside the car. Suddenly she stops looking out the front window.  
Martine turns too, off her look, to see through the windshield that the causeway is blown away about a quarter mile ahead. “Shit!”  
The Martine climbs through the window into the front seat, tugging on the dead driver. The heavyset Akbar is like a bag of cement.  
Root look up through the sunroof and sees a chopper above the limo descending rapidly. Shaw is climbing out onto the skids. She hooks on arm and leg over the skid and hangs down as low as she can.  
Root stands up in the opening and waves her arms.

 

Inside the chopper Cole is yelling at the pilot, who's not thrilled with this idea. “Get lower, goddamnit! Right now!”  
Shaw strains downward with one hand and Root reaches up toward her. The car screeches along the guard-rail, slamming against it throwing her from side to side in the sunroof. Their fingers touch, then separate. She looks the limo is almost on the precipice.

 

\-----

 

Inside the car, Martine is desperately pulling on the inert driver. He slumps over on her, pinning her. She looks over the dash as the shattered edge of the causeway rushes toward them…  
Shaw's hand grabs root's and she pulls her out of the car just as the limo clears the edge. She is jerked through the sunroof screaming at the top pf her lungs. The car falls away, arcing gracefully to the ocean below. It hits with an enormous explosion of water.  
Shaw pulls root up onto the skid with her getting Root stable, who is gasping, holding on for dear life then Root looks down at the ocean, the burning wreckage on the bridge, the whole unbelievable panorama.  
Root looks at Shaw and grins wide. She's alive! And so is Sameen. And not only that, this is the biggest rush of her life. Shaw grins back. Surprised and pleased that Root is more of a soul-mate than she ever knew.

 

\------

 

The DEA chopper is landing on the highway Shaw jumps out of the open door followed by Root and Cole. Then Shaw looks at her watch. “Any minute now.”  
Cole grabs a megaphone yells to everybody “It's show time. Don't look at the flash. Do not look at the flash.”  
Then Shaw turns to Root “we're safe here.”  
Root and Shaw move away from the agents. They are safe and together. They look at each other and there is nothing to say. Shaw removes Root’s wedding band from the wrong hand and slips it back onto its rightful finger. Then Shaw leans forward to kiss her. Root reaches for her and their lips meet in a passionate kiss.  
While they are locked together in that position when the sky lights up behind them. Shaw covers their eyes and they stay in the kiss.  
As they pull apart to recover their breath Root smiles blushed “what a kiss.” 

 

\-------

 

Not far away Cole is with the other agents, his finger pressed in his ear, listening to his comlink. He waves to Shaw to come to him.  
Shaw detaches from Root and walks over to him. Root watches her go back to work then glances over at the two Harrier that are standing nearby watching the explosion cloud and says proudly.  
‘’That's my wife.”  
Shaw goes into the huddle with Cole and the others agents. “Collier's copter landed twenty minutes ago, he's on the top of a high-rise downtown. SWAT's on the scene, and I got the cops sealing off the area. He rendezvous’ there with about a dozen more faction members and some civilians. They're barricaded on the twentieth floor.”  
Coles pauses as Root join them and looks at her serious before saying. “They have a hostage. It’s…uh. It's Harold.”  
“Harold? You mean my Harry?” She says alarmed.”  
After Shaw Harold is the most important person on Root’s life. She can’t imagine what kind of person she would be without him.  
He explains “they must have grabbed her during the night... we didn't know. Sorry, I…”  
Root turns to Shaw looking at her eyes. Root’s face shows mixed feeling. They look at each other without saying a word, their eyes doing all the talking.  
Then Shaw is already moving sprinting toward the DEA chopper again. Cole runs after her. “Shaw! Wait, we have a man inside already… Shaw!! Aw, shit... here we go.”  
Shaw walks up to the young pilot. “We need to borrow this thing for a few minutes. Cole, we need a team for this.”  
Cole gestures with his hands and four guys fully armed join them in the chopper.  
The pilot turns the engines on and takes off towards the city. Inside Cole gives Shaw a tactical vest and a commlink.  
“All right, who’s our man inside?”

 

\------

 

In an unfinished building in the high rise district a helicopter sits on the roof, its rotor turning slowly. The street below is jammed with cars and honking horns echo up the glass canyons.

At street level as cops use bullhorns and bad attitudes to clear the street around the building, setting up a perimeter two blocks away.

 

Inside the building, Vigilantes men have barricaded themselves on the twentieth floor. There are 12 terrorists, all with automatic weapons. Occasionally one of them will fire a burst down a stairwell with an AK-47. A SWAT team members are deployed in the stairwell but are keeping their distance.  
Collier is sequestered with the bomb. It sits on the floor and still in its shipping case. Harold stands nearby with a group of people who were kidnaped the night before. looking scares, none of them are tied up. The group is formed by is attorneys, data brokers and highly government authorities.  
Harold watches Collier go to the metal box and insert his arming flash drive. Collier has some TV monitors and computers set up on some crates.  
He asks to one of his man “how’s the signal?”  
“Satellite uplink is good. We’re streaming online all over the world.”  
Then one of the terrorists grabs a camera and points to Collier.  
“I can’t tell you how long we’ve been waiting for this moment. Now it’s the time to expose the truth to our fellow citizens. A truth that’s been lurking beneath the shadows for so long. That their country is no longer their. Their freedoms has been stripped away, one camera, one cell phone, one megabyte at the time.  
“Now it’s the time to pull back the curtain. And since a free press is vital in every democracy we invited the media and opened these proceedings to observers around the world.”

 

Then A terrified action news reporter and his cameraman under guard by two terrorists, are hastily setting up to shoot Collier.  
Posed as cameraman no one less than is Leon Tao. “We’re on.”  
Collier talks to the group of hostages. “You part of the a vast sustained criminal conspiracy to spy on every woman, man and child in the US. It’s a information war we want the people who’s control it, abuse it, destroy peoples life’s and answer to no one. Someone who’s represent everything that’s wrong with a unchecked Orwellian state. And put them in the crosshairs.”  
“We are prepared to die for our cause, if anyone tries anything all I have to do is active that usb flash drive and this bomb will explode instantly.”

The reporter glances down, nervously. “what flash drive?  
Collier looks down. The flash drive is gone.  
He shouts to his men “someone has stolen it!”

 

He turns looking around wildly. Collier then sees Harold running for the stairwell to the roof. He pulls a pistol and shoots at him but hits the wall as Harold bangs through the door. He runs after him with two following.  
On the interior of 20th floor seeing a chance while the terrorist were distracted, Leon discreetly says into his earpiece. “Now!”  
Then there’s a loud explosion, the tactical team burst the door. At the same time, Leon pulls his gun from the camera and shoots the terrorists nearby.  
Cole, Shaw and the other agents move with precision securing the hostages and shooting the remaining terrorists. No survivors of Vigilance.  
Shaw approaches Leon in the middle of the room. “Where’s Harold?”

 

Collier hears the firing but from where he is, he can't see what's going on. He focuses on the  
Flash. He and his two men slips up to scout to roof for Harold.

 

Meanwhile Cole and Shaw quickly scans the roof guns in hands ready to shoot.  
They found him curled behind a ventilation column Collier roughly grabs him and says.  
“Give me the flash drive.”  
“I’m sorry I can’t do that.”  
“Give me I will shoot you.”  
“I…, I can’t do that because I destroy it.”  
Collie has a murderer look on his face. He raises his gun about to shoot Harold when Cole and Shaw shot him and at two terrorists before they can even fire their weapons.  
When they walk to Harold, the two agents found him is crouched with his hands on his face shaking. Shaw gently take his hand. “It’s ok Finch, you’re safe.”  
He lifts his head and when he recognizes her voice.  
“Mrs. Shaw?!”  
Harold doesn’t know if he is more shocked with the dead men around or with Root’s wife with a gun. “What is going on?”  
Shaw glances to Cole and then back to Harold and grins.  
“Long story Finch.”

 

\-----

 

ONE YEAR LATER

 

It’s night and inside a house dinner is served. With a family atmosphere, everybody's there: Root, Shaw, Bear, Harold and his wife Grace. They’re seem to be having a good time eating good, talking and laughing.  
Then phone rings.  
Root stands up and give Shaw a smile as she goes to pick to up the phone.  
On the other side, Root hears a electronic voice.  
“Can you hear?”  
Calmly signaling Shaw with her eyes, Root says.  
“Absolutely.” 

 

It's a party at the embassy, a black tie affair. Very glitzy with champagne and dancing. It is an embassy crowd, very international.  
And Root and Shaw work their way through the crowd. Shaw is dressed as a formal waiter tuxedo and bow-tie, her hair is tied into a ponytail. Root is in a elegant in a low-cut gown and diamond choker. Shaw scoops two glasses of champagne off a passing tray and hands her one.

 

\------

 

Very close is Cole hunches in a dark van someplace nearby. He speaks into his commlink.  
“So, what's the scoop, team? You see your contact yet?”

 

\-----

 

Root and Shaw smile and nod as if they know the people of the party.  
Speaking very low, Root answer Cole via earpiece. “Not yet. But we'll find him.”  
Shaw examines the room then has an idea when she glances back at Root.  
Then takes her hand looking at her with a charming grin.  
‘‘Dance?’’


End file.
